Baron and the Pumpkin King
by AMX
Summary: It's the moment you've all been waiting for, folks. The prequel to Ed Edd n Eddy's Nightmare Before Christmas! See how all the madness started, and how it involved Jack, Eddy's brother, and Oogie Boogie! R
1. Reunited: A Hero of Times Past

**Author's Note**: Welcome, one and all! I have recently finished my Gorillaz story _Some Hideous Story where the Guardian Dies_, which means I'm now ready to work on the prequel to _Ed Edd n Eddy's Nightmare Before Christmas_, which all of you have patiently waited for!

First of all, I want to thank everyone who have reviewed and given me praise for my other Ed Edd n Eddy/Nightmare Before Christmas stories, all of which I'm sure will review and (hopefully) praise this story, too! This might be one of the few Ed Edd n Eddy stories starring Eddy's brother, and I'm glad to be writing it.

Now, without further ado, I give you the story that started all the madness (at least with Jack Skellington): _Baron and the Pumpkin King_! Happy reading! ;)-**AMX**

* * *

Prologue  
**Reunited: A Hero of Times Past  
**_  
_

_Twas a long time ago,  
Longer now than it seems,  
In a town that's best known  
For bringing shivers and screams._

The hero of this town  
Is called the Pumpkin King.  
He's known far and wide  
For just doing his thing.

_The Pumpkin King's first three stories  
You already know.  
One's about how he discovered Christmas,  
Sandy Claws, and snow._

_The second tells the story  
__Of how his town was overrun  
__By skeletons and ghosts;  
__That surely wasn't fun!_

_The third takes a twist  
__To another town at unease  
__A tale of friendship, switcheroos,  
__And . . . dang dirty hippies?_

_Though these stories are about  
__The Pumpkin King and his fame,  
__A few other things  
__Also remain the same._

_One's the evil Oogie Boogie  
__Made of cloth, bugs, and threads.  
__The other is a trio  
__Known as the Stouthearted Eds._

_Ed Edd n Eddy.  
__Three boys, that's who.  
__The helped the Pumpkin King defeat Oogie  
__One time plus two!_

_But before the Stouthearted Eds,  
__This foreign town knew one other  
__This story's about how the Pumpkin King  
__Met a certain Stouthearted Ed's _brother. . .

---

It was a beautiful Saturday morning in October in the small town of Peach Creek. The little cul-de-sac in the center of the town seemed the most at peace this morning. A stranger would never have guessed that the very night before, the whole town was under siege by an army of possessed skeletons and their horrifying leader; a great monster known as Oogie Boogie.

However, there were no signs of any skeletons. No bugs. Nothing out of the ordinary.

That's because Oogie Boogie was gone. And hopefully, he wasn't coming back.

And it was all thanks to a trio of stouthearted boys with the same name, a group of kids rehearsing for their school play (_Hair_), a skeleton, a living rag doll, and a cranky mad scientist in a wheelchair.

If given these details, a normal stranger to Peach Creek would probably not get it.

However, there was one person who would make perfect sense of the events. He was from Peach Creek, but he left a few years before to go to college.

But things were different now. He was coming home.

The man slowly opened his eyes and was overjoyed to see the bus stopping at the bus stop near Peach Creek's cul-de-sac. It had been a long bus ride back to his hometown from his college, even if he had only brought only one suitcase with him.

As the bus's doors opened, the man stood up, grabbed his suitcase, and quickly got off the bus. He watched the bus drive away, then turned to the other direction down the sidewalk. He finally found the house he was looking for; a pink one. This was _his _house, and he hadn't been here for ages.

He quickly ran up the driveway and up to the front door. He didn't know if his parents would be there or not. He guessed not; they were usually at work by this hour. But he did know one thing; he had a little brother, and he would definitely be home on a Saturday morning.

The man knocked on the door. He waited. He put his ear to the door.

However, he didn't hear any approaching footsteps. He tried knocking again, this time a little louder. When he still didn't get an answer, he rang the doorbell.

Still no answer.

The man looked around nervously, then glanced at his watch.

"Come on, little bro," the young man mumbled. "Answer the door already. I came all the way down here to see you. I've been wanting to tell you this story ever since you told me you met _him_. The least you could do is answer the door . . . "

_**Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in  
Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in  
Let the sunshine, let the sunshine in, the sunshine in!**_

The man perked up when he heard something behind him. It was singing! And even better, he vaguely recognized one of the voices. He quickly turned around, pleading with his mind to be right.

He was right.

Coming up the sidewalk were three boys.

One of them was tall, with one eyebrow and a blank expression on his face. He didn't look too bright, and his clothes seemed dirty. His name was Ed.

Another boy looked much neater. He was wearing very neat-looking clothes, and wore a hat that looked like a sock on his head. His name was Edd, but to avoid confusion, everyone called him Double D.

The third boy was the one the man was happy to see. He was the shortest of the three boys, with a big mouth and three lone black hairs on his head. He was Eddy, the leader of the three Eds.

Collectively, these boys were known as the Stouthearted Eds.

As the Eds came closer, the man saw they were dressed like hippies! Peace necklaces, multicolored sunglasses, ripped jeans . . . and was Eddy wearing _his _old jacket?

"Man, what a night, huh?" Eddy was asking Double D and Ed.

"I must say, it was quite invigorating," said Double D. "Despite all the drama."

"Oogie is vanquished once and for all!" Ed exclaimed.

"That's for sure," said Eddy. "I tell ya, I feel a whole lot better knowing Oogie's gone for . . . "

"EDDY!"

Another voice stopped Eddy in mid-sentence. He looked ahead to his house. Standing on the sidewalk in front of the driveway that led to his house was somebody he hadn't seen in a long time. His eyes widened and began to water.

"Bro. . .?" he managed to squeak out.

Ed and Double D's jaws dropped.

"Your _brother_, Eddy?" asked Double D.

Eddy gave a numb nod.

"Not quite yourself there, eh Bucko?" Ed asked Eddy.

But Eddy wasn't listening. He was already in a mad sprint up the sidewalk, nearly pouncing on the older man. His brother.

Baron was home.

"It's really you . . . " Eddy moaned as he hugged his brother. "I. . .I've never said it before, but . . . I really missed you . . . "

"I know you have, dude," said Baron. "I missed you, too."

"What the heck are you doin' here?" Eddy asked, breaking the hug. "It's the middle of the school year!" He then turned behind him and saw that Ed and Double D had caught up to them. "Oh, that's Ed and Double D, by the way," he added, gesturing to his friends.

"Well, I wasn't planning to, but when you told me about finding Halloween Town and all the crazy adventures you've been having with Jack, I knew I _had _to come here," Baron explained. "Now I want to tell you about _my _adventure. About when I first met Jack."

"Well, in that case . . . " said Eddy. "Shouldn't we _all _hear this story?" He gave a sly grin to his older brother; that same grin Baron taught him to successfully give.

"What are you . . . " Baron began to ask. Then he stopped. The same grin appeared on _his _face. "Oh . . . I get ya." He turned to Double D and Ed. He took a lone key out of his pocket and tossed it to Double D. "This is the key to my room. Take it and wait for us there. Eddy and I . . . are going to pick up an old friend."

"We get to go in Eddy's brother's room again!" Ed exclaimed.

Double D looked at the key, which was attached to a disco ball keychain. "I always suspected as much . . . " he muttered.

He then looked up just in time to see Eddy and Baron running off at top speed. They were headed toward the woods.

The brothers knew exactly where they were going. They knew the path so well, they no longer needed the map that had brought them to that special land in the first place.

* * *

**A/N**: There you go! Reviews are greatly appreciated! ;)-**AMX**


	2. The First Story: Two Legends Meet

Chapter 1: The Story Behind the Story: Two Legends Meet

Ed and Double D were patiently waiting in Baron's now unlocked room. Or, at least, Double D was waiting patiently. Ed, on the other hand, was touching anything he could get his hands on. He had only been in Baron's room one other time, and that time, Eddy had ensured Ed wouldn't touch anything by tying him to a chair (not that it had worked). But now Eddy wasn't around, and Ed was definitely smart enough to seize an opportunity when he got one.

Suddenly, the silence was broken by the downstairs door opening and a flurry of mixed conversation bursting into the house. Two of the voices were immediately recognized as Eddy and Baron's voices. The third voice was the most excited, and even Double D had to think for a few seconds until he realized who it was.

It was Jack's. Eddy and Baron had made a quick trip to Halloween Town and brought back Jack Skellington.

"Dude, breathe!" Double D and Ed heard Baron say. "You gotta breathe, man! I know you're excited, but you still gotta slow down!"

Just then, Eddy ran up and appeared in the open doorway. "In here, in here, in here!" he said ecstatically, gesturing to somebody outside the door.

Baron entered his room with a big smile on his face, followed by a gushing and heavily breathing skeleton. Eddy entered last.

Double D looked at the bewildered look on Jack's face. "Surprised, Jack?" he asked.

Jack sat down on the floor near the window. He looked at Double D. "I don't know," he said. "Ask me again in about a week when it sinks in!"

The Eds and Baron laughed.

"Did you ever think you'd see my brother again, Jack?" Eddy asked.

"No," said Jack. He looked at Eddy. "And judging by the look on your face, I'd say you weren't expecting it either."

Eddy shifted excitedly. "Hey, man, I'm probably in more shock than you are right now. You're not the only one gettin' this surprise."

Jack finally took the chance to actually look around Baron's room. It was quite a sight: a stuffed camel; a big, red, shiny metal thing (the car); a refrigerator; he took a chance to look behind him and saw the window was brick-layered shut.

"My, Baron," he said, "your room certainly is . . . eccentric."

"Yeah . . . " said Baron. "I went through a lot of phases growing up. For some reason, everyone says I'm a "whiz" at doing anything. I don't think I'm more special than anyone else, though; I just do whatever feels comfortable to me, and I don't really care if anyone objects, really."

"Speaking of comfort . . . " Jack looked around again. "Where's your bed? All I see is that red, shiny thing over there, and it doesn't seem very comfortable, even for _my_ standards . . . "

"Oh, no," said Baron. "That's my car. I'll get my bed out." Baron walked over to the refrigerator and opened it. Out popped a fair-sized mattress.

"Wow," said Jack as Eddy and Baron sat on the bed.

"Isn't he the coolest?" Eddy asked.

"So. . .why'd you want us all here, Baron?" Double D asked.

"Well . . . " Baron said. "I already know about _your _adventures with Jack, courtesy of my little brother . . . " Eddy shrugged. "So. . .I thought it would be a good idea if I told you how this all started in the first place."

"You mean how we first met?" Jack asked.

"Exactly, my friend," said Baron. "You _do _remember, right?"

"Remember?" Jack asked. "How _couldn't _I remember? That was the night I first officially earned the title of Pumpkin King!"

"Really?" asked Ed.

"Yes, as a matter of fact," said Jack. "But . . . I think the story really begins with Baron. So. . .?"

Everyone looked at Baron.

Baron chuckled. "Okay, okay," he said. "Let me think." He thought for a moment. "I guess . . . I guess it all started that night when I first left the house . . . "

* * *

Many years ago, on a fair-weathered Halloween night, a pink house stood amidst the many houses in the cul-de-sac of Peach Creek. 

Near four o'clock in the evening, a young twelve-year-old boy dressed in a dark red pilot's uniform stepped out of this pink house with a big bag of items he would need on this night. To this boy, Halloween wasn't about going door-to-door and getting candy.

Halloween was about playing pranks on unsuspecting victims.

This particular boy was the king of pranks. He had every trick in the book in that bag: eggs, toilet paper, cherry bombs, even a spring-loaded clown in a tin can; the most unique prank in his collection.

The boy was very proud of his title. He was also happy about the fact that he had a three-year-old brother named Eddy. The boy was more than ready to teach his little brother all the ins and outs of pranks. For now, however, he'd have to bask in the glory alone.

As the boy walked down the sidewalks with his big bag of pranks, he was trying to run a list through his head of how he was going to strike.

"_Hmm . . . _" he thought as he walked. "_Who should I hit first? The old people in the house at the end of the road? Or that couple that just moved in near my house? Or maybe . . . _"

SMACK!

The boy's thoughts were interrupted when something hit him right in the face. He dropped the bag and grabbed the object obstructing his vision. It was a piece of paper, by the feel of it. But when he got a better look of it, the boy saw it was something much more.

It was a map! It wasn't like any map the boy had seen before. He recognized the location, though. It seemed to go somewhere deep inside the woods of Peach Creek. Before he could stop himself, the boy's imagination went wild.

"_Oh, man! I don't believe this! I wonder where it goes? I bet it goes to some town nobody else knows about that gives you buckets of candy! And it'd be all for me! Now _this _is how you should spend a Halloween!_"

The boy grabbed his bag and ran off the sidewalk into the area behind the houses. This led to the woods. As the boy continued to follow the map, he gave occasional glances to the area, only to find himself going deeper and deeper into the woods, with no sign of stopping.

After a while, the boy began to get a little nervous. Where exactly did this map lead to? At this point, it couldn't have been a secret town. All he saw were trees, trees, and more trees!

Suddenly, the view of the trees was broken. The boy and his big bag of pranks suddenly found himself in a clearing, smack dab in the center of the woods. And in this clearing, there was one lone tree in the middle. But it wasn't like any tree the boy had ever seen before. Carved into the trunk was an orange jack o'lanteren, complete with a big grin!

The boy walked up to the tree and inspected it. He chuckled. "Einstein's got nothin' on this," he said.

Suddenly, the tree (or at least, the jack o'lantern) did something unexpected: it opened! It wasn't just a carving; it was more like a door!

The boy gasped and jumped back from the tree. "I didn't do it!" he exclaimed. Then he looked around and reminded himself there was nobody around. He sighed. "I gotta stop doing that . . . " he mumbled.

The boy cautiously looked at the opening in the tree. Surprisingly, the inside of the tree looked hollow. He took a few steps closer, clutching onto his bag, and slowly peered in.

Nothing. Just a whole lot of black.

"Pfft," he muttered. "All that hype for nothing?"

Just then, the boy felt a wind picking up; this was odd, because the weather report never said anything about wind that night. Then the boy realized something else; the wind was coming from _inside _the tree! Not only that, the wind was _sucking him in_!

"H-hey! HEY! HOLD ON!" the boy yelled. He held tightly to his bag in one hand, and the map in the other.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't fight the wind. Before he knew it, he felt himself being _picked up off the ground _and falling headfirst, bag and all, into the tree! As the boy's frightened yells faded as he fell farther and farther into the tree, the jack o'lanteren door shut behind him.

---

Meanwhile, somewhere in another town not too far away, a tall, lanky skeleton was scurrying around his house, making the final preparations for the holiday he was a natural at.

"Halloween is just hours away," he was saying to himself. "I'm so excited! I'm like a kid in a cadaver store! I can hardly wait to show the good ghouls of Halloween Town my latest trick. Tonight they will all see why I am known as. . .the Pumpkin King! Tonight will be perfect! What could possibly go wrong?" (**A/N**: Well, we all know what happens when someone says _that_, right? Just ask Timmy Turner.)

After a while, the skeleton was ready. He packed up his newest trick and began to head into the heart of Halloween Town.

However, he began to have an uneasy feeling as soon as he stepped out of his house. Something seemed . . . wrong. As he went through the gate at the end of his walkway, he looked around.

The town was abandoned.

The skeleton took a few more steps. "This isn't right," said Jack. "We're supposed to be getting ready for Halloween! Where is every . . . "

BUZZZZZZZZ!

"GET OUTTA HERE, YA UGLY INSECTS!"

The skeleton jumped. He didn't recognize the voice, but whoever it was, he was in trouble! He ran toward the direction of the voice.

Near the outskirts of Halloween Town, the skeleton got quite a sight. There, near the front gate, was a swarm of giant bugs ganging up on a young boy! The boy was dressed in a dark red pilot's outfit, complete with goggles. Either way, the skeleton didn't recognize the boy. But he wasn't about to just leave him there. So he did the only thing he could do: he inhaled deeply.

---

The boy was busy trying to keep these giant . . . mutant insects away from his face while trying to hold onto the map. All of a sudden, a monstrous high-pitched shriek filled the air, making both the boy and the bugs recoil in horror. The bugs sped off while the boy dove to the ground, covering his head with his hands.

"Are you okay?"

The boy jumped again when he heard a new voice. He looked up and saw a very tall skeleton in a black pinstripe suit kneeling over him. It took a few seconds for the boy to find his voice. As he stood up again, he put the map in an inside pocket in his pilot jacket.

"Am I okay?" he repeated. "Am I o-what do you think, buddy? One minute I'm following this kooky map and peering into this pumpkin-shaped hole in a tree, the next I'm falling through space, land in some weirdo town, and nearly have my face stung off by killer bugs! Does _that _sound "okay" to you?"

The skeleton stared. "Well . . . I'd say it doesn't," he said. "I take it you're not from around here."

"Darn right I'm not," said the boy, standing up and dusting himself off. "Where is "here," anyway?"

"Why, you're in Halloween Town," said the skeleton. "Home of all the ghosts and ghouls who make Halloween possible every year." He outstretched one of his bony hands to the boy. "And I'm Jack Skellington, the one in charge of it all. What's your name, and where are you from?"

The boy was taken aback with all this. Halloween Town? Jack Skellington? What was his name?

Well, he did know one thing: there was no way in heck he'd be telling this weirdo his name.

"My name . . . isn't important," said the boy. "Just call me . . . " He thought of his costume. "The Red Baron of Peach Creek."

This time, it was Jack's turn to be taken aback. He had never met someone with such a name. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Baron," he said. He then spotted Baron's bag. "What's that?" he asked, pointing to it.

Baron glanced at the bag. "Oh . . . uh . . . that's just my bag of Halloween tricks," he said. "I have my own way of celebrating Halloween."

"I see," said Jack. "You're not _harming_ anyone, are you?"

"What?" Baron asked. "Oh, no. I don't play them on people. Just the normal Halloween pranks. I mean, what's Halloween without a little mischief, right?"

"Well, I can't argue with you there," said Jack.

"So, uh, about those bugs," said Baron. "Are those part of Halloween, too?"

Jack looked in the direction the bugs sped off in. "Unfortunately, no," he said. "I don't know who or what sent them. All I know is the whole town's abandoned." He scratched his skull. "And I'll bet anything those bugs had something to do with it."

"Seriously?" asked Baron. "Who on earth would want to stop Halloween?"

"Probably someone who likes causing trouble and takes pride in the harm of others," said Jack. "I don't like that."

"You gonna get to the bottom of this?" asked Baron.

"Of course," said Jack. "I can't let Halloween not happen after all our hard work!"

"In that case, count me in," said Baron.

Jack looked at Baron, surprised. "Are you sure?"

"Hey, man," said Baron. "I may be a troublemaker sometimes, but there is _no way _I'm about to let anyone mess with my favorite holiday." He picked up his bag of pranks and hoisted it over his shoulder. "Where to first, expert?"

Jack sighed. "Well, I'd probably check around the town first. Who knows what kind of trouble's going on? And with Halloween only a few hours away . . . "

"In that case, let's get going!" said Baron.

"My thought exactly," said Jack.

With that, the new friends ran off to the center of Halloween Town, unaware of the journey that was waiting for them.


	3. An Abandoned Town: The First Foe

**Author's Note**: Yes, yes, I know. It's been a while since I updated. But a lot has been happening at my house (sad excuse, I know). However, I have been working on a few other things: I got a LiveJournal account. Feel free to check it out; you can access it on my profile page. Meanwhile, here's the next chapter of Baron and Jack's story. Happy reading! ;)-**AMX**

* * *

Chapter 2: An Abandoned Town: The First Foe

"So Jack actually had to _save _you?" Eddy asked. "Come on, bro! I thought you were tougher than that!"

"What?" Baron asked. "I was caught off-guard. What?"

Jack looked at Baron, then at Eddy, then at Baron again. He shook his head. "I cannot get over how much alike you two are."

"In terms of personality, maybe," said Double D. "In terms of social standing, on the other hand . . . "

"Let's not get into that, okay?" Eddy asked.

"Don't stop now!" said Ed. "What happened next? What happened next?"

"Okay, okay . . . " said Baron. "What happened next. . ."

* * *

Jack and Baron wandered through Halloween Town, searching for any sign of life . . . or, as much life you could find in Halloween Town, which wasn't a lot. 

"This isn't good," said Jack. "Everyone's disappeared. And it's almost time to start the festivities!"

"I call this place a ghost town . . . " Baron said, lugging his bag of pranks behind him, "but there are probably actual _ghosts _living here."

"JAAAAAAAAACK!"

Jack and Baron stopped when they heard an unusually whiny voice.

"What the heck is that?!" asked Baron. "Another bug?"

"Well, not exactly . . . " said Jack.

Suddenly, a short, cone-shaped blur came rolling up to the duo. When it stopped spinning, a small man with a very dismal face was standing in front of the two. He wore a suit and a badge that said "Mayor."

"Jack!" said the Mayor. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Baron, meet the Mayor of Halloween Town," said Jack. "Mayor, this is my new friend, Baron."

"Oh, hello young man," said the Mayor.

Baron waved hello. "So, uh, do you know anything about why there's nobody here?"

The Mayor winced. "Oh, it's terrible. Simply terrible!" he cried. "Bugs have overrun Halloween Town, attacking everything in sight! Everyone's hiding to try and stay away from them!"

"Well, that explains a lot," said Baron.

"Do you have any idea who's behind this?" asked Jack.

"Uh . . . no," said the Mayor. "But there's a major infestation in the upper part of the town. You can reach the area by going up that ladder." Mayor pointed to a nearby ladder behind him.

"Thanks, Mayor," said Jack. He walked over the ladder and began to climb it. "It's time we got to the bottom of this."

"Wouldn't that be the top?" Baron asked.

As a response, Jack just stared at Baron. "What?"

"Never mind," Baron mumbled.

"Oh, Jack!" said the Mayor, his face switching to a more pleasant-looking face. "If you're going to handle those bugs, take this with you!" He took a small can out of his pocket and tossed it to Jack. The skeleton caught it.

"What's that?" Baron asked.

Jack opened the can. A small green cloud sprayed out of it. "Frog Gun," Jack answered.

Baron's eyes widened. "O-kaaaay . . . " he muttered, not wanting to know more.

Mayor looked at Baron. "Oh . . . I'm sorry," he said. "I don't have one for you."

"Uh . . . no problem," said Baron, reaching into his bag. "I'm sure I've got something to use here . . . AH HA!" He pulled a small can out of his bag.

"What's that?" asked Jack.

Baron sprayed some of the contents onto his hand. "Silly String!" he said. "This oughta give those pesky vermin a run for their money."

"Oh, I praise you two for your efforts," said Mayor. "With you two on the job, I'm sure Halloween will be able to go off without a hitch!"

"That's the idea," said Jack. "Come on, Baron."

"You don't have to tell me twice," said Baron. He began to climb up the ladder with his bag, but it appeared to be difficult climbing with one hand.

"Baron, I'm sure the Mayor will hold onto that for you," said Jack.

Baron looked down at the Mayor.

"Well, I suppose if it will lighten the load . . . " said Baron, tying the top of the bag and gently dropping it back next to the Mayor. "Just don't touch anything in there, please."

"No problem!" said Mayor.

---

As soon as Jack and Baron got to the top of the ladder, they immediately began dodging bugs, scaring them off with the Frog Gun and the Silly String.

"So. . ." said Baron, as the two wandered along the path, "was that really the Mayor?"

"Yes," said Jack. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, for a mayor, he's not exactly the most steadfast I've seen . . . "

"Yeah, I suppose so," said Jack. "It _does _seem a little surreal, even for Halloween Town. I make a lot more decisions than he does. For some reason, he's not very good at making decisions. Maybe it's his split personality . . . "

"Yeah," said Baron. "I kinda figured that out when I saw the two faces."

All of a sudden, a swarm of bugs swooped down. A storm of green cloud mixed with Silly String filled the air. The mixture knocked out the bugs.

"Sheesh, there's getting to be more of them," said Baron as the two continued to walk. "Do you think someone in the town would do this?"

Jack thought for a minute. "I don't think so," he said finally. "I know everyone in town. And I certainly don't think anyone would want to destroy Halloween . . . "

Suddenly, Baron almost tripped over something. He looked down and picked up a small object, a part of it covered in hair. "What the heck is this?" he asked.

"That's a shrunken head," Jack answered.

Baron's eyes widened. "EW!" he yelled, dropping the head.

"No, it's okay," said Jack, picking up the head himself. "I collect these. This is a nice one . . . "

"Right," said Baron. "No offense, but I've heard enough."

"Oh," said Jack. "Sorry."

---

After that, the two continued along the path in silence.

Suddenly, Jack stopped.

"What?" Baron asked, also stopping.

"Look," said Jack, pointing straight ahead.

A bigger bug was in front of them, wrapped around a sign; they couldn't see what was on it.

"You confuse it with your string, then I'll go in for the kill," Jack whispered to Baron.

"No problem," said Baron.

The young boy slowly crept up to the bug, his finger expertly above the trigger. Just when the bug seemed distracted, Baron jumped up and sprayed the Silly String right in its eyes. Then, Jack ran up and gave the bug a full blast from the Frog Gun. The bug shuddered, then slowly fell to the ground.

"Good work, Mr. Baron," said Jack.

"That's why I'm the king of pranks," said Baron.

"You seem to be enjoying this."

"Are you kidding? Being able to pull my pranks without the risk of getting in trouble? I'm savoring every minute of it!"

"So, what _is _on this sign?"

Jack and Baron looked at the sign. The only thing on it was a giant arrow pointing deeper down the path.

"I think this path leads to the crypts," said Jack. "Come on!"

"Wonderful," Baron mumbled, following Jack.

---

The duo soon found themselves deep inside the crypts.

"Geez, good thing I got the super-size can," said Baron, shaking his Silly String can. "That had to be the biggest swarm of all back there!"

"I agree," said Jack. "If I'm not mistaken, this might be the source of all of them in this area . . . "

"Well then, where is it?" Baron asked.

"I don't . . . " Jack began, looking up. Then he stopped. "Oh no. . ." he muttered.

"What?" asked Baron.

"Giant arachnid . . . "

"They got peanuts in here?"

"What? No, there's a. . ."

Suddenly, something swooped down from the ceiling from the room. Baron looked up.

"GIANT SPIDER!" he yelled.

"I just said that!" Jack responded, moving out of the way.

"Well, next time, say it in English!" said Baron, following Jack.

Just as they moved out of the way, the massive spider landed on the ground with a THUD.

"What do we do?" Baron asked. "What do we do?!"

"Shoot at its face!" Jack yelled.

"Oh," said Baron. "I coulda thought of that."

However, it wasn't that simple. Jack and Baron could only get in a few good shots before the spider rose again. It even tried other tactics, such as swinging back and forth and waving its legs, shooting webs at the duo, and even releasing baby spiders to go after them.

"Man, I wish this thing was smaller!" said Baron as he shot Silly String at the baby. "Then I could just stomp it like I always do!"

"Don't worry," said Jack. "I think we've got it on the ropes!"

It was true. By this time, the spider seemed to be tiring. It was now a mass of clouded-over eyes and multicolored Silly String.

"One more good hit ought to do it!" said Jack. "Get ready!"

"I'm _always _ready," said Baron.

They crouched down, waiting for the spider to stop moving. Then . . .

"NOW!"

The air became filled with a green cloud mixed with Silly String, showering the spider. The combined ingredients appeared to be too much for the spider, because it collapsed onto the ground. It began to shudder.

Baron knew what shuddering like that meant. "IT'S GONNA BLOW!" he yelled. "RUN FOR IT!"

The two dove behind a nearby rock and cautiously peeked over the edge. They got quite a sight.

The giant spider had burst into blue flames.

A giant rumbling noise caught their attention. They dove back under the rock and didn't dare go back up. A sudden boom, followed by a SPLAT, met their ears.

Then, nothing.

They peeked again. This time, they were meant with another sight.

The spider was gone, but the room was covered in a thick, green slime.

"Whoa . . . " Baron muttered.

"Well . . . " said Jack. "I think it's safe to say that worked."

"Yeah, I guess," said Baron, looking around the room. "Uh, where next?"

"We should probably keep going," said Jack, walking out from behind the rock. "Just watch your step."

Baron looked at the slime-covered floor. "Uh, I don't suppose you feel like carrying me, would you?"

Jack looked at Baron. "Let me think about that," he said. He paused. "There, I thought. No."

Baron sulked. "Didn't think so. . ." he muttered.

---

Somehow, the two made it out of the crypt.

"Where does _this _path lead?" Baron asked.

"Hey, I recognize this road!" said Jack. "It leads to my house."

"Your house?" Baron repeated. "This I gotta see . . . "

"I'm glad you're interested," said Jack. "I can introduce you to . . . " Just then, he stopped. "ZERO!"

"Huh?" Baron asked. "Zero what?"

"No, Zero!" said Jack. "He's my dog! I left him at my house! If those bugs have invaded my house, I don't know how Zero will handle it!"

"And I'm guessing you wouldn't want that to happen . . . " said Baron.

"Of course not!" said Jack. "Come on! We have to hurry!"

With that, the skinny skeleton began sprinting down the path.

"Man, easy for him to say," Baron muttered, beginning to run after him. "All he has are bones to carry. Not skin and other stuff to weigh him down like _some _of us . . . "


	4. Call the Exterminator!: Where's Zero?

Chapter 3: Call the Exterminator!: Where's Zero?

"Ha! That's my brother," said Eddy. "He always was a whiz at getting rid of spiders."

"And am I ever glad we got rid of that one," said Baron. "It was nasty."

"So, you've been inside Jack's house too, Baron?" asked Double D.

"Ooh! Ooh!" said Ed. "It was really cool on the inside, right?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, I didn't get a real good look at it at the time," said Baron.

"Yeah, I remember that now," said Jack. "You boys haven't seen what my house looks like when it's infested to the top floor with bugs . . . "

* * *

"Geez, now these bugs are throwin' cannonballs at us?" Baron asked as he and Jack headed to Jack's house.

"Oh, it's not so bad," said Jack, dodging the balls. "Sometimes, you just have to . . . " As he spoke, he shot the cannon and the bug controlling it with his Frog Gun.

"Okay," said Baron, "I have to admit, that's impressive, but . . . " Suddenly, he stopped in mid-sentence and squinted into the distance.

"What?" asked Jack. "More bugs?" He looked in the same direction as Baron.

"It's something, all right," said Baron. "But I'm not sure it's bugs . . . "

From where they were standing, Jack and Baron were just able to make out three shapes in the distance. It looked like three little kids; two boys and one girl. One boy was dressed as a devil, the other boy was dressed as a skeleton, and the girl was dressed as a witch. Even weirder, they seemed to be sitting in. . .a bathtub with actual legs.

"Who are those kids?" asked Baron.

"I think I know who they are," said Jack. "And I'd like to ask them a few questions . . . " Jack began to run toward the bathtub with the kids in it. "HEY!" he called to them.

Unfortunately, the kids saw Jack. The walking bathtub suddenly took off like a shot.

Jack stopped running.

"Wow," said Baron, running up. "You dealt with that like a pro. You said you know those kids?"

"I'm sure of it now," said Jack. "Their names are Lock, Shock, and Barrel. I wouldn't be surprised if _they _turned out to be a part of this . . . "

"JAAAAAAAAACK!"

Jack and Baron winced.

"That's a familiar voice," Baron mumbled as the Mayor rolled up.

"Oh, there you boys are," said the Mayor. "I wanted to thank you two for clearing those bugs out of the crypts . . . but it seems we have another problem now!"

"You mean those kids?" asked Baron. "Yeah, we noticed."

"Those children have been racing all over Halloween Town!" said Mayor. "I'm beginning to suspect that they're playing some part in all this madness." Then, the Mayor paused. "Say, Jack, why isn't Zero with you?"

"We were just about to check on that," said Jack.

"Then we'll need to go after those kids, too," said Baron.

"I've got it!" said Jack. "If Zero was with us, he'd be able to sniff those kids out with no problem."

"All the more reason to get him, then," said Baron. "Let's go!"

"Oh, before you go . . . " said the Mayor, "I heard those kids talking about someone. I think his name was . . . "

All of a sudden, a blur of three kids in a walking tub zipped by, knocking the poor Mayor down and causing him to roll down the path.

Jack and Baron just stood there in silence as the Mayor's screams grew fainter and fainter. Then . . .

"I don't suppose you know what he was gonna say, do you?" asked Baron.

"No, unfortunately, said Jack. "We have to get Zero, and fast!"

Baron stood in awe of Jack's amazingly tall house.

"_This _is your place?" asked Baron. "It's huge!"

"Yes, it is," said Jack opening his front door. "But, knowing Zero, I'd say he's on the top floor. As long as there's nothing to distract us, I'm sure we can. . ."

Jack suddenly stopped when the two got a good look inside Jack's house.

They had come a little too late. The entire house was covered in bugs!

"Um . . . would this be considered a distraction?" asked Baron.

Jack looked at Baron. "Not if we run up the stairs really, really fast," he said.

"And that'll lead us to your dog?"

"It should."

"How should we do it?"

"On three?"

"Fine by me."

"Good. Ready?. . .THREE!"

With that, the two sprinted through the forest of bugs and up the spiral stairs that led to the top of Jack's house. Every now and then, the air filled with the same cloud of Frog Gun and Silly String from the crypts.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Jack and Baron reached the top floor and ran into a back room, slamming the door behind them.

"Please tell me this is where your dog is," said Baron.

"Well, let's see . . . " said Jack. He patted his lap twice.

Just then, out of the corner, a dim red light began to shine. A small ghost dog popped out from behind an armchair in the room. Seeing Jack, he barked happily and floated right up to him.

Baron was awestruck. "This is Zero?"

"Yes," said Jack. "His nose is amazing. With any luck, we'll be able to . . . "

CLANG!

Both jumped at the loud noise just outside the door. Baron ran over to the door and flung it open, only for the two to get an unpleasant surprise . . .

A barred gate was under the other side of the door, and behind it were Lock, Shock, and Barrel, laughing their heads off!

"HEY!" Baron shouted, grabbing the bars of the gate and shaking it.

"I knew it!" said Jack. "You three _are _a part of this, aren't you?"

"You bet we are!"said Lock.

"Jack Skellington's trapped in his own house!" said Shock. "Isn't irony wonderful?"

"He's sure to be pleased by this," said Barrel. "We'll get our Newt Nugget reward for sure!"

The three scrambled away, laughing like crazy.

"You . . . BRATS!" Baron yelled. "I oughta . . . " Just then, he realized something. "Hey, wait!" he shouted. "WHO will be pleased? Is that who's been causing all this chaos?! ANSWER ME!" Then, in frustration, he chomped down on one of the metal bars and tried to pry it off.

"Forget it, Baron," said Jack. "There's no way we can get through that thing. And . . . I'm fairly certain that's not good for your teeth."

Baron finally gave up and let go of the barred gate. "Now what?" he mumbled.

"They think they have us trapped, but they forgot one thing," said Jack.

"And what's that?" asked Baron.

Jack pointed to the other side of the room. In the middle of the wall was a fireplace.

Baron stared for a moment, then suddenly got it. "What, we're gonna play Santa Claus now? We're gonna climb up that thing?"

Jack just stared at Baron. "We're playing what now? What's that mean?"

Baron just stared. "You mean you've never heard of . . . ? Oh, never mind. If you think it'll work, I'm game." He walked over to the chimney and peered up it. "But how are we gonna see in this thing?"

"That's where Zero comes in," said Jack. "His nose will light up the chimney, and our pathway." He turned to Zero. "Think you can do that, boy?"

Zero barked.

"All right then!" said Jack. "You lead, Zero."

Zero then flew up the chimney, his nose glowing a little brighter. Jack went in next, followed by Baron.

After a few stops on the way up (Jack hadn't cleaned the chimney in a while) and a few close calls (Baron actually got stuck once or twice), a soot-covered skeleton and boy emerged from the chimney onto the roof, where Zero was waiting for them.

"Well," said Jack, "that went as well as could be expected."

"Oh, yeah," said Baron, who was shaking the soot off his pilot jacket. "Now what do we do?"

"I say we find those three troublemakers again and finally figure out who's behind this whole mess," said Jack. He then looked down. "Now, we just need to get down from here . . . "

"No problem," said Baron. "Believe me, this isn't the first time I've jumped off a roof . . . "

Soon, Jack, Baron, and Zero were back in Halloween Town Square, wondering where to go next. Then . . .

"Jack! Jack! It's horrible!"

The Mayor ran up to the now-trio.

"Another infestation, Mayor?" Jack asked.

"It's the Doctor's lab!" said the Mayor. "It's become overrun with those pests!"

"The Doctor?" asked Baron.

"Dr. Finkelstein," Jack explained. "The town's resident mad scientist."

"Mad "angry" or mad "crazy"?" asked Baron.

"Both," said Jack. He turned back to the Mayor. "Don't worry, Mayor. We'll check the lab out and see if the Doctor and Igor are okay."

"Goodness me . . . " said the Mayor. "I hope Sally's okay, too . . . "

"Sally?" asked Jack. "Who's Sally?"

"Oh!" said the Mayor. "I guess you don't know her. She's the Doctor's latest creation. I believe he said she was a. . .living rag-doll . . . "

"Well . . . this is even more reason to check it out," said Jack. "Let's go!"

"Hold on . . . " said Baron, who had seen his bag of pranks the Mayor was still carrying. "I've just gotta get something from here . . . yes!" He grabbed something from his bag and stuffed it in his pockets.

"What's that?" asked Jack.

"You'll see," said Baron. "Now let's see if we can help this Doc out, shall we?"

"His door was locked when I got there," said the Mayor. "So I unlocked it for you!"

"Thanks, Mayor!" said Jack. "And don't worry; we'll make sure the Doctor . . . and this "Sally" girl . . . are okay!" With that, he began running toward the Doctor's lab, followed by Zero and Baron.

"Keep taking care of that bag for me!" Baron called to the Mayor as he ran.


	5. The Doc's New Pet: Battle in Electic Lab

**Author's note**: Hmm…I did it again, didn't I? Okay, I know this is going to sound clichéd, but I have my reasons for not updating for so long. I mean, everyone's just getting back into school and everything…I'm sure others out there would agree with me on this one! Anyway, for your viewing pleasure, here's the next chapter of Baron and Jack's story. The plot gets thicker from here, folks!

Oh, by the way…I gave Needs More Cowbell 17 permission to write her own sequel to _Ed Edd n Eddy: Halloween of Hair_. It's called _Royalty of Halloween Town_. Gijinka Renamon has also written a story based on my idea; it's called _The Last Halloween_. Check them both out; they're really good! Happy reading! ;)-**AMX**

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* * *

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Chapter 4-The Doctor's New Pet: Battle in the Armed Lab

"Aw, come _on_, bro!" said Eddy. "What'd you take out of your bag of tricks?"

"Be patient, little brother," said Baron. "I'm getting to it."

"How'd you like the Doctor, Eddy's brother?" asked Ed.

"Well…" Baron, "I admit he was a bit of a…um…"

"He's a quack, right?" asked Eddy.

"Well, yeah," said Baron. "That pretty much sums it up right there."

Jack became confused. "I still don't see why you boys keep calling the Doctor a duck. He certainly doesn't look like any duck I've ever seen…"

Double D sighed. "He _still _doesn't get it…" he mumbled.

"Okay, okay," said Baron. "I'm getting ahead of myself. I'll start when Jack, Zero, and I first got to the lab…"

* * *

Baron stared in awe at the monstrous electric laboratory in front of him. 

"_This _is this guy's lab?" he asked.

"Yes, it is," said Jack. "The Doctor has many experiments he keeps in here."

Then Baron noticed how incredibly _tall _the structure was.

"Okay…I can understand that," he said. "_Please _tell me this thing has an elevator."

"Uh…no elevator," said Jack. "Sorry. The Doctor is confined to a wheelchair, so he has a big ramp to get to the top."

Baron groaned. "Great," he muttered.

"Oh, and I should also warn you…" said Jack. "The Doctor doesn't like to be disturbed, so he's made a very high-tech security system."

Baron groaned again. "This isn't gonna be easy, is it?"

"Don't worry," said Jack. "It's never easy for me, either."

"Wow, how reassuring," said Baron. "Well…how 'bout we save the Doc and get it over with?"

"My thoughts exactly," said Jack. "Come on, Zero!"

With that, the skeleton, the boy, and the little ghost dog made their way up the stairs to the lab.

---

Baron looked around the inside of the massive building. It didn't really help that sparks were literally flying off the metal walls.

"Hoo boy," said Baron. "I hope I don't get fried in here. So…where should we look first?"

"Well, the Doctor usually spends most of his time in his main lab," said Jack. "We should probably start there."

"How much more challenging do you think it will be to mess with not only this security system, but the mass army of bugs sure to be swarming these halls?" Baron asked.

"Well, that I'm not sure of," said Jack. "But then again…" He pulled out his Frog Gun. "I've never come here armed before."

"Good point," said Baron. "Well…the sooner the better, right?"

"Right," said Jack. "Let's go!"

So…Baron, Jack, and Zero raced through the lab, dodging and fighting not only the hoard of bugs that had infested the lab, but the Doctor's security system, which not only consisted of lighting, but all sorts of crazy traps and guard beasts; Baron concluded that they were beasts because they certainly didn't look like any dogs _he'd _ever seen.

Finally, after a huge bug army, endless traps, and a _very _long staircase, the group made it to the Doctor's main lab.

Jack and Zero were just fine; Baron, on the other hand, was so tired, he collapsed onto his back, breathing heavily.

"A little too much, huh?" asked Jack.

All Baron could do was glare at his new friend. He was too out of breath to give a response.

"Uh oh," said Jack. "The Doctor's not here. I hope he's all right…hey, what's this?" The skeleton picked up a note on the Doctor's desk. "Doctor's Log," Jack read out loud. "I have finally completed the Bat Boomerang. I'm a shoe-in for the Ghastly Gadgets Invention Contest this year!"

"The…Bat Boomerang?" Baron gasped, finally getting his breath back. "What the heck is that?"

"Well, I bet it's this thing here," said Jack, picking up a bottle from the desk.

Baron took a closer look…then jumped back. There was a bat in the bottle.

"Don't worry," said Jack. "I don't think it's real."

"Doesn't matter," said Baron. "Bats creep me out in general. Hey!" he added as Jack took the weapon out of the bottle. "Whatever happened to privacy?!"

"Oh, I'm on good terms with the Doctor," said Jack. "I'm sure he won't mind."

"For your sake, I hope so," said Baron.

"Well, since this is a boomerang, I should be able to hit things I wouldn't normally reach," said Jack. "This will make a perfect projectile."

"How about these?" asked Baron, taking a carton out of his pocket.

Jack looked at the carton. "Eggs?" he asked. "Why do you…?" Suddenly, his face turned sour. "You _egg _houses, Baron?"

"Uh…uh…" Baron stuttered, trying to think fast. "Of course not! This is just for…uh…the Halloween party at my school! Yeah! Uh…we fry eggs there."

"Well…okay," said Jack. "As long as you're not doing anything wrong."

"I just thought these would be perfect for throwing at the pests," said Baron.

"I suppose it would be a good distraction," said Jack.

"Well, if the Doc's not here, where would he be?" Baron asked.

"Well, I know for a fact that the Doctor has a private lab somewhere around here…" said Jack.

"Well, then it's not so private now, is it?" said Baron.

Jack stopped and thought. "Oh…I guess your right," he chuckled. "Oh, well. Follow me!"

---

After the group left the Doctor's main lab, Jack led Baron deep within the lab, fighting off bugs and the Doctor's own security system.

"Are we there yet?" asked Baron.

"Almost!" said Jack. "Just stay with me!"

"Right now, that's what I'm hoping for," said Baron as he dodged another electric spark.

Finally, Jack led Zero and Baron into a bare room. At least, Jack _thought _it was bare. He was surprised to find actual furniture (a bed, a desk, a rug, a sewing machine, etc.) in the room.

"Huh, that's odd," said Jack. "I don't remember all this being in there. Oh well…"

He pushed the rug up, revealing a trap door in the room.

"That's the way to the private lab?" asked Baron.

"Well, it's the only way I know of," said Jack. "I'm sure there are others…Oh, darn it."

"What?" asked Baron.

"There's another one of those bugs down here," said Jack. "The ones with the sign."

Baron sighed. "Well, at least we know we're headed in the right direction."

---

"Well, that was uneventful," said Baron, after they had defeated the bug with the sign. "You think the Doc's down here?"

The group was now heading down the path from the trap door.

"Positive," said Jack. "I know the Doctor. He's always somewhere doing research with his assistant, Igor."

"Igor?" asked Baron. "Hmm…why does that sound familiar…?"

Before Baron could finish, he, Jack, and Zero found themselves in a large, dimly lit room.

"Doctor?" Jack called out.

No answer.

"Well, that was a good point, coming down here," said Baron, walking around the room. "How many places can a guy in a wheelchair hide…HOLY COW! WHAT'S THAT?!"

"What?!" said Jack.

Baron pointed to the thing that had freaked him out. In the corner of the lab was a colossal red snake, glaring at our heroes.

"Oh, my. I take it you're not into snakes, either," said Jack.

"Hate 'em even more than I hate bats," said Baron.

Just then, Jack got a better view of the snake. It seemed to be coiled around something. Squinting, Jack was jut able to make out…

"Dr. Finkelstein?" he asked in surprise.

Sure enough, there was the Doctor, his head just poking out of the mass of snake coil.

Jack smiled. "What a wonderful new pet you have!" he exclaimed.

Baron looked at Jack in shock. "Dude, if snakes are huge and dogs are ghost here, I don't even wanna _think _about what cats are! That's no pet!"

"The boy's right, Jack," the Doctor wheezed. "This is no pet. I've been captured! Help!"

"Oh man, oh man, oh man…" said Baron. "What do we do?!"

"Well, we need to save the Doctor and get rid of that snake!" said Jack.

"Oh, I could've thought of that," said Baron. "Any plans?"

"Well, if we get too close, it might hurt the Doctor," said Jack. "So I say you distract it with your eggs, and I hit it with the Bat Boomerang."

"Oh, wonderful," said Baron, cringing at the fact of fighting a _snake_.

So, that's what they did. Baron kept the snake's attention by repeatedly slinging its face with eggs in expert precision (let's just say he had practice). Meanwhile, Zero would alert Jack of any openings on the snake, in which the skeleton would sling the Bat Boomerang at it. As they did their onslaught, they made sure not to provoke the snake too badly, so it didn't hurt the Doctor.

Surprisingly, despite its massive size an intimidating look, the snake wasn't all that powerful. After a good barrage of blinding eggs and a thrashing from the Bat Boomerang, it suddenly began to shudder.

The trio watched as the snake slumped onto the ground, loosening its grip on the Doctor.

Jack quickly ran over and helped the Doctor back into his wheelchair, which had been tossed askew to the other side of the room.

"Phew," said the Doctor, after he had been properly situated. At the same, a small man with a disfigured face and a large hump popped out from behind a desk; Baron guessed this was Igor.

"Thank you Jack," said Dr. Finkelstein. He looked at Baron. "And who is this?"

"I'm Baron," said the boy. "I'm Jack's new friend."

"I see," said the Doctor. He turned back to Jack. "I see you found my Bat Boomerang," he said. "Well…though I don't approve of you snooping around my lab without my permission…"

"Told ya so," said Baron.

"…It did help you defeat _that _thing," the Doctor continued, pointing back at the snake. "So, for now, I'm letting you keep it. At least until all those pesky bugs are all exterminated. I've been meaning to test it."

"Thank you, Doctor," said Jack. "How did that thing get down here, anyway?"

"I'm not sure," said the Doctor. "I was just doing some research down here, and the next thing I know, I'm sandwiched in the middle of that thing. But I do know one thing: the same kids who brought that snake in there are the same ones who kidnapped Sally!"

"Lock, Shock, and Barrel?" asked Baron. "Ah, yes. Those brats. We're all too familiar with them."

"But, I don't understand," said Jack. "Why would they want to kidnap Sally? It doesn't seem like she did anything wrong…"

"Man, this isn't making any sense," said Baron.

"Well, the point is, I need her back here immediately!" said Dr. Finkelstein. "Who else is going to make my soup?"

"Uh…o-kaaaaay…" said Baron.

"Don't worry, Doctor," said Jack. "We'll find Sally for you!"

"Wonderful," said Dr. Finkelstein. "I'm counting on you boys. Come, Igor."

With that, he and Igor went back to the desk to perform more research. But suddenly, the Doctor stopped.

"Oh, by the way…" he said. "Jack, the Corpse Kid was here, but he ran off when that snake appeared. I think he ran to the Pumpkin Patch. Perhaps he could be able to help you."

"Thank you Doctor," said Jack. "See you tonight, at the Halloween celebration!"

Jack then ran off, followed by Zero.

Baron was about to leave, but he realized he had one last thing to do…

"See ya, Crazy!" he said to the Doctor. He then ran off after Jack, laughing.

The Doctor looked up as Baron ran off. He then shook his head in exasperation. "Kids these days…" he muttered.


	6. The Pumpkin Prince: Explosive Patch

Chapter 5-The Pumpkin Prince: The Explosive Pumpkin Patch

"So, you didn't even know Sally yet, Jack?" Eddy asked.

"No," said Jack. "Like I told you before, this was a long time ago."

"Long before any of us were able to understand, I assume," said Double D.

Baron chuckled. "Heck, Eddy found it when he was thirteen and I _still _didn't think he'd understand…"

Eddy scowled at his brother. "Ha ha…" he muttered.

"Did Jack and Eddy's brother find Corpse Kid in the Pumpkin Patch?" asked Ed, changing the subject.

"Oh, yes," said Jack. "Actually, I think this is the part of the story where _you _come in, Eddy."

Eddy sat up. "_Me_?" he asked.

"What…?" asked Baron. "Oh, yeah! Now I remember…"

* * *

Baron, Jack, and Zero strolled down the path toward the Pumpkin Patch, not saying much. As Baron looked around, he began to notice how different the scenery was from Peach Creek.

"Geez, I'm not sure I could get used to this," he said out loud. Then he snickered. "Man, I bet my baby brother would freak if I brought him here…"

"You have a brother, Baron?" Jack asked.

"Oh, yeah," said Baron. "He's nothing special, though. He totally looks up to me even though he's a three-year-old pipsqueak…"

Jack frowned. "Baron, that's not very nice…"

Baron laughed. "Oh, you're right," he said. "I'm sorry. It's just a habit, I guess. It's just kinda fun to poke fun of him. It's just so weird seeing play with those two little friends of his; it's even crazier that they all have the same name! They're always going around, trying to scam the other kids out of money. I taught him everything he knows, of course…"

"Interesting," said Jack. "So…what's your brother's name?"

"Oh," said Baron. "His name is…"

"WHOOPS!"

"Huh?" Baron asked. He looked in front of them. The path was blocked off by what looked like a stone wall.

"Dead end?" asked Baron. Then he realized what he said. "Oh, that's ironic…"

"Yes it is," said Jack. "Guess we'll have to take the other path. Come on."

"Aw, man…" said Baron, "more walking."

---

"Well, this path is so far so good," said Jack, as he, Zero, and Baron climbed upwards.

"Yeah," said Baron. "You should have stopped me before I got on a roll; we'd probably have gotten here faster."

"Oh, it's not really a problem," said Jack. He paused. "Do you think your brother would like me, Baron?"

"Hmm…" said Baron. "I'm not really sure about that one. He's so used to having those two friends around; he doesn't really have any other friends. Who knows how he'd react to you…"

"Oh? What's that?" asked Jack.

"What?" asked Baron. He looked to where Jack was staring.

A few feet away, in the middle of the Pumpkin Patch, there was…somebody that appeared to have a massive jack o'lantern stuck on his head.

Jack and Baron walked up to it.

"Dare I ask what this thing is?" asked Baron.

"Well…I'm not sure myself," said Jack. "But maybe…"

"Maybe…what?" asked Baron.

"Maybe…it's a Pumpkin Prince!" said Jack.

Baron started laughing.

"JAAAAAACK!"

"Oops," said Jack. "I know who that is…"

Zero barked.

Sure enough, the Mayor rolled up behind Jack, Zero, and Baron.

"Jack, it's terrible!" said the Mayor.

"Is it about this Pumpkin Prince?" asked Baron.

"That's no Pumpkin Prince," said the Mayor. "It's Corpse Kid! He's been attacked by a Possessed Pumpkin!"

"Oh," said Jack. "That makes more sense. Still, that doesn't look very comfortable. There must be a way to get these off…"

Just then, Baron spotted something behind the Possessed Pumpkin. Blue and white roots appeared to be growing out the back of the pumpkin and snaking into the ground.

"Hey, maybe if those roots weren't connected to the pumpkin, it'd be easier to take off," he said.

"Hey, that's it!" said Jack. "If we get rid of those, the Pumpkin should come right off!"

"Is that the easy part?" asked Baron.

"Well, they do look deep down in there," said Jack. "Those roots could be all over the Pumpkin Patch by now!"

"Eh…I knew it was too good to be true," said Baron. "So…we get rid of the roots, Corpse Kid here comes out unharmed?"

"That's right," said Jack.

"If I know Possessed Pumpkins, they have three giant roots in all," said the Mayor. "You'd better move quickly. I'll stay here with Corpse Kid."

"Right," said Jack. "Come on, Baron!"

"Like I have any other choice?" asked Baron.

---

"So, Baron," said Jack as he, Zero, and Baron jumped across vine ladders in another part of the Pumpkin Patch, "tell me more about your younger brother."

"Well, there's not much to tell," said Baron. "Like I said, he really looks up to me. He's always getting into my records, and he wants to know everything about making money. My parents say he's just like me when I was his age."

As Baron talked, Jack spotted the first clump of roots and was relentlessly hacking away at them with the Bat Boomerang. When the roots were finally chopped up enough to clear the pathway, the trio moved on.

"Well, it seems you two are definitely interested in the acquisition of money," said Jack as they continued. "What for?"

"Candy," said Baron.

"Candy," Jack repeated. At this point, they were over a spiky pit, where he was shooting at the second patch of roots with the Bat Boomerang.

"Yeah, you know, jujubes, fudge, things like that," said Baron as the patch of roots fell. "But our favorite is a jawbreaker."

"A jawbreaker?" asked Jack as they continued. "There's a candy that can break your jaw?"

"If you try to chew it, yeah, it might," said Baron. "That's why you just suck on it…"

"Hold on," said Jack. He, Baron, and Zero looked down. Below them was a pit filled with bugs; on the other side was the last patch of roots

"What's the problem?" asked Baron.

"You still got those eggs?" asked Jack.

"Yeah," said Baron, taking out a carton.

Jack took out one egg, and casually tossed it into the pit of bugs. As the egg hit the ground, a nearby bug changed color and disappeared in a small explosion; this set off a chain reaction as all the bugs went off like little bombs. It was like a little fireworks display.

"Dude…" said Baron.

Jack smirked. "I bet they don't have anything like that where you're from," he said.

"Yeah, I'd have to say we don't," said Baron.

"Now, let me just get that last one there…" said Jack, hacking away at the last root patch. As the last patch fell, Jack smiled. "Shall we?" he asked.

Baron shrugged. "Lead the way, man," he said.

---

Soon enough, Jack, Baron, and Zero found themselves back with Corpse Kid and the Mayor.

"Good work, boys!" said the Mayor. "Corpse Kid is free!"

"Thank you, Jack!" said Corpse Kid. Then he looked at Baron. "Oh, and…uh…"

"Baron," said Baron.

"Baron," Corpse Kid repeated. "It's nice to meet you. Oh! I almost forgot! I found this right before that pumpkin got me. I think it can help you, Jack." With that, he took a batch of pumpkins out of his pocket and handed him to Jack.

"What are those?" asked Baron.

"Pumpkin Bombs!" said Jack. "This ought to help us get through any barriers we might come across."

"Bombs, huh?" asked Baron. "Ooh! I've got something that can help, too!" He ran over to his bag, still with the Mayor, and pulled out a smaller bag.

"What are those?" asked Jack.

"Cherry Bombs," said Baron. "They pack a punch, too. They should help against bigger enemies."

"Okay," said Jack. He turned back to Corpse Kid. "Do you have any idea who did this to you?"

"Well…" said Corpse Kid, "right before the pumpkin attacked me, I saw…"

But before he could get any other words out, an all-too-familiar walking bathtub streaked by, slamming into the Corpse Kid. Both the bathtub and Corpse Kid went zooming down the path, accompanied by fit of laughter.

"HEY!" Baron yelled.

"Oh no…" said Jack. "At least now we can get those kids and interrogate them. Come on!"

"Good thinking, boys!" said the Mayor. "I'll go on ahead!" With that, he rolled off.

---

Jack, Baron, and Zero ran after Lock, Shock, and Barrel, immediately finding out that Jack's Pumpkin Bombs could blow away barriers in their way. As they went deeper and deeper into the Pumpkin Patch, it was getting a little harder to keep up.

Suddenly, the trio of brats threw a small box behind them and continued to scurry off. Jack and his team stopped and inspected it. Jack threw a Pumpkin Bomb at it, and out popped Corpse Kid!

"Oh, thank you!" said Corpse Kid.

"Are you okay?" asked Jack.

"A little dizzy, but yeah, I'm okay," said Corpse Kid. "But it was those three that made that pumpkin attack me in the first place!"

"Really?" Jack asked crossly.

"Is that really the so-called 'Pumpkin King'?" another voice suddenly asked.

"He doesn't look so tough!" said another voice.

"He hasn't been a match for us yet!" said a third voice.

Jack stood up and growled. He looked at Baron and Zero. "Let's go!" he said, continuing down the path. The other two followed.

The trio found the brats in their tub near the end of the path.

Jack slowly began to walk toward them. "So, _you're _the ones who've been causing havoc all over town," he scolded. "Well, I want to know who's behind all this, and I want to know now…"

"Uh…Jack?" Baron asked, looking down.

"What?" asked Jack, also looking down.

"Problem!" said Baron.

Jack immediately understood what Baron meant. The ground was buckling underneath them! Before they could do anything, the skeleton, boy, and ghost dog suddenly found themselves falling into a pit!

The last thing they heard as they fell was three children laughing above them…


	7. Graveyard Escape: The Stretchy Ghost

Chapter 6: Escape from the Graveyard: Power of the Stretchy Ghost

"Wow, you fell down a pit?" asked Eddy. "_That _certainly sounds familiar."

"Yeah, you'd think I'd have learned after that, huh?" asked Jack.

"Well, good to hear I'm not the only one," said Baron.

"So what happened next?" asked Ed.

"Well, let's see…" said Baron. "I'm gonna start right after Jack, Zero, and I landed in the bottom of the pit…"

* * *

"Hmm…" said Jack, getting a good look of their surroundings. "We seem to have landed in the underground area of the Pumpkin Patch. We'll need to look around carefully if we want to find a way out. Come on, boys."

Jack began to walk along, followed by Zero. Then, he stopped when he realized he was one partner short. He looked behind him; as it turns out, Baron had not moved from the spot on which he landed after falling into the pit. He was lying there on his back, a look of pure bewilderment on his face.

Jack walked back up to Baron until he was standing right over the boy. "Are you coming with us, or are you just going to lay there in shock?" he asked.

"I…I…they…they got us! _Again_!" said Baron. He slowly stood up.

"Well, tricks are one of the essences of Halloween," said Jack.

"But you don't understand," said Baron. "_I _don't fall for tricks. I'm the one pulling them on _other _people. _Me_."

Jack thought for a moment. "Well, look at it this way," he finally said. "At least none of your friends were here to see it."

Baron's expression became calmer. "Oh," he said. "Good point." He paused. "So…how do we get out of here?"

"That's just what we were going to figure out," said Jack. "With Zero's help, I'm sure we can…Zero?"

It was then Jack and Baron realized that the little ghost dog had wandered off. Suddenly, they heard barking, and saw a faint orange light to the right of them. When they ran over to the light, they found Zero next to a coffin about the same height as Jack.

"Does this work?" asked Baron.

"Depends," said Jack. "Are you claustrophobic?"

"No," said Baron. "Would a claustrophobic crawl through a chimney?"

"Probably not," said Jack, opening the coffin. Zero went in first. "Follow that dog!" Jack exclaimed, entering the coffin.

Baron took one last look at the vast nothingness around him. "You don't have to tell me twice," said Baron, following them.

---

After walking through a pitch-black corridor for what seemed like forever, the trio finally found another opening. Jack opened it.

"Where are we?" asked Baron, who was shielding his eyes because of the sudden light.

"Well, I'll be," said Jack. "I think we're in another part of the Graveyard."

"Great," said Baron. "But where exactly _are _we in the Graveyard?"

"I'm not sure," said Jack, looking around. "But for now, I don't think we can do anything in this room. Let's go down a different path."

"Hey, you know this place better than I do," said Baron.

As they walked away from the room, Jack suddenly stopped.

"What's up?" asked Baron.

"Don't you hear that?" asked Jack. "Someone needs help! Come on!"

Baron watched as Jack began to run down the path. "Geez…" he mumbled. "Dude doesn't even have ears and he's hearing things I can't." He then ran after the skeleton.

Jack led Zero and Baron to a large statue at a dead end. The statue was unlike anything Jack or Baron had seen (what they didn't know was that the statue was of the very being that had started the mess in the first place, hint hint).

"Geez, that thing is ugly," said Baron.

"Stand back," said Jack, taking out a Pumpkin Bomb. He casually tossed it at the statue, causing it to crumble at the sudden explosion.

After the smoke cleared, Baron finally heard what Jack was talking about. A soft, high pitched moaning emitted from the explosion site. When he looked down, he saw what was making the noise: a tiny ghost had been wedged under the statue.

Jack got down on his knees. "That must have been uncomfortable," he said to the ghost. "You're free now."

The ghost slowly floated up, then passed _right through _Jack and made its way back down the path.

"Whoa!" said Baron. "Does that happen a lot?"

"Oh, sure," said Jack. "It's not like it hurts or anything. However, now that you mention it, I _do _feel a little different…"

"Well, what now?" asked Baron.

"Well, let's go back to that one room," said Jack. "Maybe we'll find an opening!"

"I hope so," said Baron, looking around again. "I don't wanna be here any longer than we have to…"

---

Soon, the trio found themselves back in the big room.

Baron looked around the upper area of the room. "Hey! Look!" he said. "There's an opening up there!"

Sure enough, high above them was an opening big enough for the group to walk in. Interestingly enough, on the ceiling next to the opening was a patch of vines growing, which looked sturdy enough to hang off of.

"But…how do we get way up there?" asked Baron.

Jack noticed a rock jutting out under the opening. "Hey, maybe if I jump high enough, I can grab that rock…" He crouched down as low as he could, and then shot his body up, hoping to catch the rock. However…

"WHOA!" said Baron.

Jack's upper body suddenly stretched out as if it were made of a slinky! He shot up, overshooting the rock and having no choice but to grab the vines growing out of the ceiling above him.

Baron panicked when Jack's legs started to lift out the ground after the skeleton. He saw no choice but to grab Jack's ankles, causing him to be lifted off the ground as well. Before Baron knew it, he had a death grip on Jack's legs, both of them dangling in front of the opening. Zero was floating next to him.

"Okay, what just happened?" asked Baron.

"I think I understand," said Jack. "That wasn't just any ghost; that was a Stretchy Ghost!"

"And let me guess," said Baron. "It makes your body stretchy?"

"Yes," said Jack. "This power should come in handy.

"Great," said Baron. "So…can we get back on solid ground? I'm worried your legs are gonna fall off here."

"Oh, of course," said Jack.

With a little effort, Jack and Baron climbed the vines like monkey bars and safely made it to the opening.

"Oh man…" said Baron. "Will we ever have to do that again?" he asked.

"Who knows?" asked Jack. "But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." With that, he, followed by Zero, headed down the new path in the opening.

"Oh, like that really _means_ anything…" said Baron, following Jack and Zero.

---

"Any idea where this path leads?" Baron asked as he, Zero, and Jack continued down the path.

"No," said Jack.

"Oh," said Baron. "I thought you said you knew everything about this place."

"Well…" said Jack. "I'll admit there are some things I don't know about Halloween Town, but that's what makes it such a fun place to live. Every day, there's always something new to discover; it's always a different adventure!"

"Huh," said Baron. "I never thought of it that way. Maybe I should try that back in Peach Creek…"

"Oh!" said Jack.

"What?" asked Baron.

They looked down. A group of gravestones was on the ground before them.

"Oh, great," said Baron. "More of those. Well, what are we going to do…?"

BUZZZZZZZZZZZ!

"HOLY…" Baron yelled. "What the heck is that?"

"Uh…I think I can guess," said Jack.

They both looked up. A massive fly surrounded by a swarm of little flies was flying in the air above them!

"Oh man…" said Baron.

"Get ready to fight," said Jack.

"What, again?" said Baron. "Why do we always have to fight? There's too much fighting in the world today."

"Okay, I like philosophy as much as the next guy, but now's not the time for it," said Jack, readying his Bat Boomerang.

Baron shrugged. "Works for me," he said, taking out a few eggs.

The flies swooped down at the two heroes and the dog, loudly buzzing. Jack and Baron responded with a barrage of bats and eggs. The big fly sent the little flies after them; these were no trouble, considering they could be knocked out in one shot.

"Phew…" said Baron. He looked through the air. "Where's the big bug?"

Suddenly, a huge shadow loomed over them.

"RUN!" said Jack.

The trio got out of the way just as the fly slammed into the ground where they had been standing. This gave them a chance to throw another round of weapons at it.

However, at a sudden twist, the fly rose back up into the air, swooping over the heroes and dropping _eggs_ on them. But that wasn't the bad part; as the eggs hit the ground, they burst into flames! Jack and Baron stood rigid.

"Oh, man!" said Baron. "This is like if I put my Cherry Bombs in my Eggs!"

"Hey, the Cherry Bombs!" said Jack. "They have more power than your Eggs! I bet if you throw enough of them on it, it'd be enough to knock it out!"

"But how do we do that?!" said Baron.

"Like this!" Jack grabbed Baron and picked him up by the coat. "Get some of those bombs ready!"

"H-hey, hey, HEY!" said Baron. "You're gonna _fling _me?"

"Just relax!" said Jack. "I'll be right with you!"

"Oh, I feel _so_ much better," said Baron.

At this point, the boys had ended up at one corner of the area, while the fly was loudly buzzing at the other.

"Ready?" asked Jack.

"As I'll ever be, I guess," said Baron, with a handful of Cherry Bombs.

The fly made the first move; it suddenly zoomed out from the corner, right at Jack and Baron. Then, Jack began running right at the fly at top speed, still carrying Baron.

"Are you insane?!" said Baron.

"You'll see," said Jack.

Just as the fly and the duo were about to collide, Jack jumped into the air with Baron. Before Baron knew it, they were right above the fly.

"NOW!" said Jack.

Baron dropped the Cherry Bombs right on the giant fly.

As Jack and Baron landed on the ground, the fly screeched to a halt in mid-air. Then, in a magnificent display of mini explosions, the fly itself burst into flames. The end result was a charred mess of green slime and bugs.

Jack, Zero, and Baron stared at the smoking mass. Baron was the first one to react.

"WOO-HOO!" said Baron. "Did you see that?! Oh _man_, I wish I could make that happen back home!"

Jack shook his head. "Well, thank goodness _that's _over with…hey, look. There's another path there."

Jack was right. Behind the burning mass was another hidden path.

"Let's go," said Jack. He and Zero began to walk toward the path.

"Can do," said Baron, still giddy with excitement. "I'm getting into this now."

---

At the end of the path, instead of another dead end, there was a door! The team immediately went through it.

"Where are we now?" asked Baron.

"Hey, I recognize this place," said Jack. "We're back in Halloween Town Square!"

"Okay, that's good," said Baron. "At least we aren't trapped anymore."

"We'd better check the town again in case something came up," said Jack. "Let's go!"

"Right behind you," said Baron.

With that, the trio ran back into Halloween Town, wondering what bizarre task they were going to be put into next.


	8. Halloween Town Chaos: Attack of Leeches

Chapter 7: Halloween Town Chaos: Attack of the Leeches

"Okay, you guys got out of the pit and were getting back to Halloween Town…" said Eddy. "Then what?"

"Well…" said Baron. "That was when it got really intense, right, Jack?"

"Yes," said Jack. "And things were getting worse in Halloween Town…"

* * *

"Whoo!" said Baron, as soon as the trio was back in wide, open space again. "Finally out of that pathway. So, where do we go next?"

"Well, we've already done a good sweep of the upper area," said Jack. "So we'd better check the lower area now."

"There's a lower area?" asked Baron. "Okay, before we go down there, are there any hazards I should know about?"

"No, nothing at all," said Jack. He paused. "Well…"

"Yes?" asked Baron.

"Well…unless you count the little pools of acid scattered around," said Jack. "It's fine if you don't get it on you."

"_Acid_?" said Baron. "It's _fine_? There's no such thing as _fine _acid!"

"It's okay," said Jack. "You'll be fine with me around."

"For both of our sakes, let's hope so…" said Baron.

---

Soon, Jack and Zero were leading Baron down to a lower area of Halloween Town. As soon as they hit the ground, Baron could tell what Jack was talking about with the acid ponds. A small lake of purple acid was steaming right in front of them.

"Okay, here's one of 'em," said Baron. "Now what? I mean, we obviously can't _swim _across…"

"You're going to like this," said Jack.

Suddenly, a large orange and black snake popped up in front of them. Jack hopped onto it.

"Come on," he said.

Baron looked unsure at first; finally, he very carefully stepped onto the snake and clung to Jack's legs.

"So, does this thing have a motor or something that I can't see?" Baron asked.

"You'll like this, too," said Jack, taking out the Frog Gun. "Watch this."

Jack began to shoot the Frog Gun in front of them; the jet of green breath began propelling them backwards to the other side of the acid lake.

Baron laughed. "Okay, I gotta admit, that's cool," said Baron. "I have no idea what I'd do without you here."

"Oh," said Jack. "Well, I'm glad to hear that."

By this time, they were on the other side of the lake. But just as they were stepping off the snake…

"HOOOWWWWWWWL!"

"Whoa!" said Baron. "What was that?"

"That sounded like the Werewolf!" said Jack. "Come on!"

"Werewolf?" asked Baron. "What, are we in London, now?''

---

Jack, Baron, and Zero ran down the path until they finally got to another clearing. In the middle of it was Werewolf, on the ground and being attacked by a group of what looked like fanged bugs.

"Oh great," said Baron. "Now we have to deal with giant _fleas_?!"

"Those aren't fleas," said Jack. "They're leeches."

"LEECHES?!" Baron cried in disgust.

"Jack? Is that you?" the Werewolf asked weakly. "Oh, thank goodness! Please help! These three kids planted Bad Blood Machines in the acid baths, and it's making the leeches go crazy!"

"Well, I'm gonna guess Lock, Shock, and Barrel were already here," said Baron.

Jack walked a little closer to Werewolf, but when he got a few feet away from him, the leeches sat up and hissed. Baron jumped.

"Hmm…I don't think this way will work," said Jack.

"Oh ya think?!" said Baron, still keeping his distance.

"I guess our only option is to find those machines," said Jack.

"I repeat, ya think?!" said Baron.

"There are three machines in all," said Werewolf. "Please hurry!"

"Don't worry," said Baron, looking at Werewolf. "I don't see any reason for us not to."

---

"Any idea what these Bad Blood Machines look like?" Baron asked Jack as they climbed up a ladder in another area.

"I'm sure we'll know them when we see them," said Jack. "We just need to look for something out of the ordinary."

"Uh, you might have better luck at that than I will," said Baron. "For me, _everything _looks out of the ordinary."

"Oh," said Jack. "Good point."

As the climbed to the top of the area, they immediately could see the first Bad Blood Machine in the middle of another acid bath.

"How're we gonna destroy that thing?" asked Baron.

Suddenly, the Bad Blood Machine's top opened, and a toxic-looking purple gas spewed out of it.

"I bet if we put enough firepower in the top of that thing, it will short-circuit," said Jack.

"We get to blow more stuff up?" asked Baron. "Awesome!"

Baron and Jack once again rode a snake to the center, where the machine was. The next time the top opened, they each threw in a Pumpkin Bomb and a handful of Cherry Bombs. Then, they sailed away as fast as they could as the machine blew up from the inside out.

"Aw, yeah!" said Baron, as they stepped of the snake and back onto solid ground. "That was sweet!"

"Two more to go," said Jack.

---

Jack, Baron, and Zero slowly entered another area. Baron began to walk forward, but Jack suddenly stopped him.

"What?" asked Baron.

"Look," said Jack.

Suddenly, a drop of purple acid fell from the ceiling.

"Oh, _man_," said Baron. "As if the giant baths of 'em weren't enough…"

"We'll be fine," said Jack. "We just need to time our movements right. Besides, look what else is up there."

In the middle of the room, another Bad Blood Machine was situated on the middle of the ceiling.

"Same strategy as last time?" asked Baron.

"Yeah," said Jack. "Just have to be a little more careful."

The trio dodged the drops of acid until they were right under the Bad Blood Machine. On Jack's count, they both threw a Pumpkin Bomb and some Cherry Bombs into the air and right into the machine. They then ran out of the way as the second machine exploded and black smoke began to spew out of it.

"YES!" said Baron. "Oh, it's even cooler upside-down!"

"One more to go," said Jack.

---

The next area the trio entered was a good-sized chasm, with another patch of unreachable vines.

"Now what?" asked Baron.

"Hey, see that little block on the ceiling?" asked Jack.

Baron looked. Jack was right; there _was _a block on the ceiling, just in front of the vines. And on the block was a picture of the Stretchy Ghost.

"Oh, okay," said Baron. "But how do we activate it?"

"Like this," said Jack, throwing his Bat Boomerang at it. It worked; when the block was hit, a small ghost popped out and sailed to the bottom of the chasm.

"Let's go," said Jack, jumping down. Baron and Zero followed him.

The trio landed at the bottom of the chasm, where the ghost was floating below the patch of vines on the ceiling. When Jack touched the ghost, his body began to stretch again. Baron was prepared for this, unlike last time; he had already gotten a firm grip on Jack's legs. The next thing they knew, they were clinging to the ceiling, and were a few feet away from the cliff on the other side.

"Well, that was easy," said Baron.

"Everything's easy after the first time," said Jack as he got everyone safely onto solid ground.

"Hmm, good advice. I'll remember that," said Baron.

---

The next area held the last Bad Blood Machine. Now, not only was more acid dripping from the ceiling, the machine was on the wall, it was slowly moving up and down the wall.

"Another strategy involving accurate timing?" asked Baron.

"Yep," said Jack.

"Fine with me," said Baron. "You lead."

"Of course," said Jack.

Jack led the way through the acid drops all the way to the slow-moving machine on the wall. He was also the one who gave the command to throw the Pumpkin and Cherry Bombs into the machine. The boys watched as the third and final machine exploded.

"Well, that's that," said Baron. "Now where do we go?"

"There," said Jack, pointing to an opening right under where the machine had been.

"Oh," said Baron. "Sorry I'm so useless."

"What? You're not useless," said Jack. "I'd never be able to beat all these bugs with your help. Plus, I like the company."

"Really?" asked Baron. "Wow, thanks. That means a lot."

"No problem," said Jack. "Oh, look, we're back at the area with Werewolf."

"Huh?" Baron looked around; sure enough, they were back in the clearing with Werewolf, who was now standing.

"Oh," said Werewolf, "you must have stopped the machines. Thank you!"

Behind Werewolf were the leeches, which now didn't look so crazy. They hissed again, but this time, it didn't seem so threatening.

"Oh, the leeches are okay, too," said Werewolf. "And they want to thank you. They're going to plant acid baths all over Halloween Town to help you get into tight spaces."

"Oh," said Jack. "How convenient. Thank you…"

Jack was interrupted by Baron, who was screaming behind him.

"What's wrong?!" Jack asked, whirling around.

Baron was trembling and pointing to something on the ground in front of him. It was an eyeball. "It…it fell on my head…" Baron mumbled.

Jack walked over and picked the eyeball up. "Hey, this is the Melting Man's eyeball!" he said. "I bet something happened to him, too." He turned back to Werewolf. "Do you know where he is?"

"Last time I saw him, he was in the Graveyard," said Werewolf.

"Then that's where we're going, too," said Jack. "Come on!"

"Yeah, easy for you to say," said Baron, clutching his chest while running after Jack. "You're not the one who just had a heart attack…"


	9. Icy Graveyard: A Deadly Lunchbreak

Chapter 8: The Icy Graveyard: A Deadly Lunch Break

"So, you freaked out because an eyeball fell on you?" Eddy laughed. "Geez, bro. I thought you were better than that."

"Oh, stop it!" said Baron. "You tellin' me you wouldn't have done the same thing?"

"Eddy got scared when he had to hold a bat!" said Ed.

"That's correct," said Double D. "It _was _a bit unnerving holding those frantic Vampire Brothers…"

"Uh…what say we get back to the story?" asked Baron.

"I second that," said Jack. "Picking up where Baron left off…"

* * *

"Geez…" Baron mumbled, his arms tightly wrapped around his chest. "How'd we go from fifty degrees to sub-zero in thirty seconds?" 

"Oh, you mean the ice?" asked Jack. "Yeah, that happens around this part of the Graveyard. I'm not really sure why…"

"JACK! BARON!"

Just then, the trio spotted the Mayor ahead of them, standing over a big cauldron. Behind the Mayor was Baron's bag of tricks.

"I'm glad you're here, boys," said Mayor. "You're just in time to join me for lunch!"

"_Lunch?_" thought Baron. "_In the middle of the afternoon?_"

"Uh…no thanks," said Jack. "Mayor, we're looking for the Melting Man. You haven't seen him, have you?"

The Mayor thought for a moment. "Nope," he responded. "The only non-living things I've seen around these parts ghosts."

As Jack and the Mayor talked, Baron walked over to his bag and dug something else from it, putting it in his pocket.

"Hmm…" said Jack. "Baron, come on. We're going to talk to these ghosts; they might know something."

"Oh, I doubt they'll be of any help," said the Mayor. "You know how ghosts are. But…speaking of help…"

Jack sighed. "What do you want, Mayor?"

"Well, you see…" Mayor explained, "I don't have any ingredients for my lunch. It would help me a lot if you and Baron could look for some."

"Ingredients?" asked Baron. "I thought we were looking for the Melting Man."

"We are," said Jack. "I'm sorry, Mayor, but we're going to have to decline this time. We have a more dire situation on our hands at the moment."

"Oh, please, boys?" asked the Mayor. "I'm sure you could look for my ingredients _and_ the Melting Man. And I'll be sure to save you some of my Gall-Stone Gumbo…"

"_Gall-stone?_" thought Baron. He swallowed the lump in his throat.

Jack sighed again. "All right, Mayor," he said. "I suppose it wouldn't be _that_much trouble. Come on, Baron."

"Don't mind if I do," said Baron, quickly following Jack.

---

"So, I'm guessing finding these ingredients ain't gonna be no picnic, huh?" Baron asked when they were a good way's down the path.

"Very funny," said Jack. "Well, since I know where to find all the ingredients, I suppose you should keep your eyes open for the Melting Man?"

"Uh…okay," said Baron.

As the trio made their way through the Graveyard, Baron kept quiet; he could tell Jack wasn't happy about being detoured from their original intentions. He also kept quiet so he could steady his stomach from the less-than-appealing ingredients they had to find: Bog's Brain, Witches Brew, Bone Brittle, and Mucus Mold. Baron kept himself occupied by looking all over for anyone that looked like a Melting Man; but all he could see was ghosts.

---

After wandering around the Graveyard for what seemed like _forever_, Baron, Jack, and Zero returned to the Mayor plus four ingredients, minus one Melting Man.

"Oh, you're back!" said the Mayor. "Did you find the Melting Man?"

"Nope," said Baron. "At least…I don't think we did."

"No, we didn't," said Jack, doing his best to keep his composure in front of the Mayor. "But…we did find all your ingredients."

"Oh, thank you, boys!" said the Mayor. "I really appreciate it."

As the Mayor placed the ingredients in the cauldron, Baron saw Jack's face honestly soften. But then, out of nowhere…

"WHOA!"

Baron yelped as the Melting Man's eyeball suddenly hopped out of Jack's possession and landed straight into the cauldron!

"Huh?" asked the Mayor. "Why'd you put _that _in there, Jack?"

"Jack didn't do it!" said Baron. "It hopped out of his pocket!"

"Calm down, Baron…" said Jack.

Suddenly, a large mass of runny red with an almost comprehensible face emerged from the cauldron. It was the Melting Man!

"Melting Man!" the Mayor exclaimed. "What were _you _doing in there?!"

Baron, Jack, and Zero watched as the Melting Man murmured to the Mayor.

"Uh huh…I see…" said the Mayor. Then he turned to the trio. "The Melting Man says that Oogie Boogie tore his body apart and scattered his parts across the Graveyard. He was able to reform his body when all the parts were put inside the cauldron."

Baron, however, wasn't exactly paying attention to any of this. As the Mayor was talking, Baron noticed that Jack's expression was going from content to…angry.

"Outrageous!" Jack exclaimed when the Mayor finished. "Who is this Oogie Boogie? I demand to know why he is causing all this trouble for everyone!"

"Oh…I guess I never told you," said the Mayor. "I don't know a lot about Oogie Boogie; he's very reclusive and lives in a lair located under Lock, Shock, and Barrel's Tree House. I've also heard that he calls himself "The King of Bugs"."

"Well, that certainly explains a lot," said Baron.

"The King of Bugs?" Jack repeated. "This Oogie Boogie character doesn't sound appealing at all; he just sounds insane!"

"Uh, with all due respect…ya think?" said Baron.

"Well, I'd like to have a talk with Oogie Boogie," said Jack. He turned to Baron and Zero. "Come on, boys! We're going to the Tree House!"

The Melting Man began to murmur at the Mayor again.

"Jack, wait!" said the Mayor. "The Melting Man wants to help you guys!"

"How?" asked Baron.

The Melting Man then took out a sticky pair of shoes and handed them to Jack.

"What're those?" asked Baron.

"They're Gum Shoes!" said Jack. "These will help us scale the huge walls around here. Thanks!"

The Melting Man nodded.

Jack put the shoes on, then paused for a moment. "Hmm…before we confront Oogie, we should probably make sure the other townspeople are safe. Do you know where any of them are, Mayor?"

"Uh…no, not all of them," said Mayor. "But I do recall the Witches mentioning going to the Pumpkin Patch."

Baron looked at Jack. "What, you don't think more trouble could be brewing there, do you?"

"Well, I don't think it would hurt to check," said Jack. "Good thing there's a shortcut in the area that leads to the Pumpkin Patch."

"Good thinking, boys," said the Mayor. "I'll go and look for anyone else to make sure they're okay."

"Thanks," said Jack. "Let's go, boys!"

"Lead the way!" said Baron. He and Zero followed Jack down the path.

---

The trio soon found themselves in front of a massive wall.

"So…the shortcut's up there?" asked Baron.

"Yeah. Don't you remember?" asked Jack. "This is a different pathway than the one we took before."

"Oh. Okay," said Baron. "So, how're we gonna do this?"

"Well, this is the perfect time to test out these new Gum Shoes," said Jack. He got down on his knees. "Hop on."

"What, get on your_back_?" asked Baron. "Oh, no. I couldn't."

"Hey, if I could support you when you were grabbing on my legs, this won't be a problem," said Jack. "Would I be telling you to get on if I didn't think it was a good idea?"

Baron thought for a moment. Then he shrugged. "Well, who could argue with that logic?" he asked. He carefully climbed onto Jack's back.

Then Jack carefully scaled the wall with Baron on his back; Zero floated up next to him. Baron could tell Jack was struggling since he was on his back; it made him feel guilty. But for some reason, Jack wasn't complaining.

Finally, the trio made it up the large wall. A familiar tomb was on the top.

"See?" asked Jack as Baron climbed off his back.

"I guess you were right," said Baron. "Uh…I hope I didn't hurt you."

"Oh, I'm fine," said Jack. "Don't worry about it."

"If you say so," said Baron, shrugging. He looked at the tomb. "Now what?"

"Now, Zero is going to lead us back through the tomb," said Jack. "Then we can look for the Witches.

"Oh, joy," said Baron.

With that, Jack opened the tomb door and Zero flew in, his nose illuminating the dark pathway. Baron and Jack followed the little ghost dog inside.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Yeah, it's been a while since I've updated. Sorry. I've been caught up in other things lately. And I think this chapter's a little shorter than the others, so that probably doesn't help. I'll try to make sure to update sooner with the next chapter. Happy reading! ;)-**AMX**


	10. Explosive Mission: Mushroom Mania!

Chapter 9: An Explosive Task: Mushroom Mania!

"Oh, man," said Eddy. "Did you guys find the Witches?"

"Yes, we did," said Jack. "That was the easy part."

"Easy part?" asked Double D. "There was a hard part?"

Baron groaned. "I try not to remember this part of the story…"

"I liked it," said Jack. "I love challenges…"

"What happened?" Ed half-whined.

"Okay, okay…" said Jack. "It was right after Baron, Zero, and I entered the Pumpkin Patch…"

* * *

"Wow, this place actually looks cool while the sun's setting," said Baron as he looked around the Pumpkin Patch.

"Well, I wish the sun would set slower," said Jack. "We're running out of time!"

"Why do I feel that time is going to be an important factor in this scenario?" asked Baron.

"Oh!" exclaimed Jack. "There's one of the Witches right there!"

Jack, Zero, and Baron ran further down the path until they were standing in front of a Tall Witch, who was stirring something in a cauldron.

"Oh, hello, Jack," said the Tall Witch. "Who's your new friend?"

"What?" asked Jack, who was caught off-guard. "Oh! This is Baron. Sorry; I'm just glad to see you're okay."

"Okay?" asked the Tall Witch. "Why? Is something wrong?"

"WHAT?!" said Baron. "You mean you haven't noticed the gargantuan infestation of bugs in Halloween Town?"

"Oh, my," said the Tall Witch. "Are you serious?"

"I'm afraid so," said Jack. "And unless we can stop them, this year's Halloween is in jeopardy!"

"Well then, please accept my assistance," said the Tall Witch. "You see, my sister, the Short Witch, is deeper in the Pumpkin Patch. She's looking for the final ingredient for that Pumpkin King Elixir you asked me to make, Jack. I can assure you, you can trash your bugs with it."

"That's all I need to hear!" said Baron. He started to walk down the path.

"But be warned," said the Tall Witch. "Around this time of night, the Noise Gnats like to gather. If you make the slightest noise around them, they might cause you some…irritation in your journey. However, they will not hear you if you duck under mushrooms."

"Thanks," said Jack. "Let's go, boys." He then started down the path, followed by Baron and Zero.

---

"So, why are these Noise Gnats so dangerous?" asked Baron, when they were further down the path.

"Well…they're not exactly dangerous," said Jack. "If they hear you move, they'll grab you and transport you to the start of the area. It can get annoying."

"_'Pick you up'?_" asked Baron. He groaned. "Remind me why I'm here again?"

"You're here to help me defeat Oogie Boogie and save Halloween!" said Jack.

"Ah, yes," Baron grumbled. "This is _so _not cool to do to a bug hater…"

"Oh, relax," said Jack. "We'll be rid of them soon enough."

"The sooner, the better!" said Baron.

"Hold it!" Jack suddenly said, holding his hand out in front of Baron.

Baron looked up. Flying above the area was a group of giant bugs with big blue eyes.

"Don't make any sudden noises," Jack whispered.

"Is that them?" Baron whispered back.

"Yeah," said Jack. "Follow my lead."

Jack then got down until he was crawling across the ground commando-style. Baron looked at him for a few moments, then shrugged; hey, he _was _the Red Baron. He then got down and crawled behind Jack. Zero also followed suit, floating after the two boys.

The boys didn't stop crawling until they were directly under a large mushroom in the middle of the area. It was a good thing, too. As soon as Baron was under the mushroom, the Noise Gnats' eyes suddenly became bright red, and they all emitted a high-pitched buzzing sound.

"Geez!" Baron hissed, covering his ears. "_Please _tell me there aren't too many more of these things around here."

"Don't worry," said Jack. "I think this is the worst of it. Once we get through this area, it shouldn't be so bad."

Once the Noise Gnats' eyes became blue again and the buzzing stopped, Jack, Baron, and Zero were on the move again. This time, they made it to the other side of the area before the Noise Gnats went berserk again.

"Man," Baron sighed, rubbing his ears. "And there's _more _of those things here?"

"Oh, come on," said Jack. "They weren't _that _bad."

"Says the guy with no ears!" said Baron. Just then, he thought of something. "Hey, if you don't have ears, how can you hear what other people are saying?"

Jack opened his mouth to speak, then stopped. He thought for a moment. "You know, that's a _really _good question," he said. "I'll have to think about that one."

With that said, the conversation was dropped.

---

One Pumpkin Block Barrier, narrow passageway, and _many _Noise Gnat infested areas later, the trio came to one last clearing. It was an area full of pumpkins. In the middle of it was the Short Witch.

"Oh, Jack!" said the Short Witch. "I'm glad you're here! I need you to do something for me."

'_Let's hope it's something worth going through all _that_,' _thought Baron.

"I need you to deliver this to my sister," said the Short Witch, holding a small mushroom. "It's the final ingredient for the Pumpkin King Elixir."

"Oh," said Jack. "No problem." He took the mushroom from the Short Witch.

Baron, on the other hand, saw something odd about the Short Witch. "I don't like that grin," he suddenly declared, pointing at the Short Witch, who was indeed grinning. "That's an evil grin. Evil grins are never a good thing. What's with the evil grin?!"

"Oh," said the Short Witch. "Did I forget to mention that these particular mushrooms…_explode_ soon after you pick them?"

"WHAT?!" Jack and Baron shouted at the same time.

"Good luck, boys!" said the Short Witch, suddenly hopping onto a broom and flying away.

"HEY!" Baron shouted at the Short Witch. But it was too late. He growled and buried his face in his hands. "We're all gonna die…" he groaned.

"No time for that!" said Jack. "We have to hurry! Don't worry; I know a shortcut!"

"We're all gonna die…" Baron repeated as he followed Jack and Zero.

---

Though it was indeed a shorter route, Jack's shortcut still consisted of Noisy Gnats. Despite Baron's protests, Jack insisted they go through the area calmly and quietly; now was not the time to get flustered or frustrated.

After getting through all the Noisy Gnats, the trio ran as fast as they could.

"See?" Jack asked. "We're almost out. There's nothing in our way now!"

Baron looked a little further down the path. His eyes widened. "Wanna bet?" he asked, pointing.

Jack looked. A little further down the path was another one of those bugs that held a sign. That could only mean one thing: a Boss Bug.

"Okay, a minor setback," said Jack. "Just stay calm, and…"

"Stay calm?!" Baron interrupted. "How?! We've got a mushroom here that could blow us both to Kingdom Come! How am I supposed to pull pranks if I get blown up by a mushroom?!"

"Would you rather _I_went ahead and left _you _here with the mushroom?" asked Jack.

Baron was dumbstruck. "I'll shut up now…" he mumbled.

"Thank you," said Jack. He threw a Pumpkin Bomb at the bug with the sign while he was still running; it exploded on impact. "Now that _that's _out of the way, whatever's next won't be a problem if we just keep our wits together."

'_Easy for him to say…_' thought Baron, who was still a little shocked by Jack's previous comment.

---

The next area seemed bare.

"Huh?" asked Jack. "There's nothing here."

"In that case, I have a suggestion," said Baron. "KEEP RUNNING!"

Baron was just about to start running again, when out of nowhere…

"LOOK OUT!" said Jack, stopping Baron.

Baron immediately saw why. A large something-or-other had barreled out and almost ran him over. It was a giant Roly-Poly bug!

"Oh, that figures," said Baron. "How're we gonna attack that thing? I don't think we have a clear shot of it!"

"For now, anyway," said Jack. He looked around. "These exploding pumpkins should help us quite nicely."

"Oh, great," said Baron. "_More _explosives?"

"Just follow me," said Jack.

Baron and Jack ran to the other side of the room, the Roly-Poly rolling after them. Suddenly, Jack stopped right behind an exploding pumpkin.

"Why are we stopping?" asked Baron.

"You'll see," said Jack. He lightly kicked the pumpkin. The pumpkin glowed bright yellow just as the Roly-Poly rolled right on top of it. Suddenly, a small BOOM was heard under the Roly-Poly and it was flipped over.

"NOW!" said Jack, throwing two Pumpkin Bombs onto the vulnerable belly of the Roly-Poly. Baron, without thinking, grabbed a handful of Cherry Bombs and threw them, too.

As the explosives hit the Roly-Poly, it writhed in pain. Then, as the explosion subsided, the Roly-Poly went limp.

"See?" asked Jack. "Nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, easy for you to say!" said Baron. "Can we just get that thing to the Witches so I can stop worrying about not having a head?"

"Oh, right!" said Jack. "I almost forgot!" He then turned to run down the path, followed by Zero.

"What?" asked Baron, following them. "How the heck could you forget that you were holding a _time bomb_?!"

---

After what seemed like forever to Baron, they finally made it back to the Witches.

"Welcome back, boys," said the Tall Witch. "My sister told me you have the mushroom."

"Don't remind us," Baron gasped, completely out of breath.

"Well, give it to me so I can finish the Elixir," said the Tall Witch.

But as Jack took the mushroom out and presented it to her, the Tall Witch screamed.

"What?!" asked Baron, who was growing more and more frustrated by the second.

"That's way too close!" said the Tall Witch.

"Then…what do I do with it?!" asked Jack, beginning to become worried himself.

"Throw it!" said the Tall Witch. "Throw it far away!"

So Jack aimed his throw and threw the now-glowing mushroom into the cauldron.

"IT'S GONNA BLOW!" Baron shouted. "HIT THE DIRT!"

A loud explosion that sounded like a cauldron bursting into a million pieces followed this.

Baron was crouched on the ground, his arms over his pilot's cap-clad head. "I'm dead," he mumbled. "I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead, I died, I dead." Then, he dared to open one eye.

Thankfully, nobody was dead. In the middle of the area where the cauldron _used _to be was a small bottle filled with a red liquid.

Jack moaned, then sat up. He looked around. "Is everyone okay?" he asked.

Both Witches nodded. Zero barked. Baron sat up with an exclamation of "Hey, I'm not dead!"

The Short Witch picked up the bottle and ran over to Jack. "Here you go, Jack," she said, handing him the bottle. "The Spicy Bottle with the Pumpkin King Elixir, just like you asked."

"This will turn you into the raging Pumpkin King we know you are," said the Tall Witch.

Baron raised an eyebrow. "I'm not sure I wanna see that…" he said.

"By the way, Jack," said the Tall Witch. "Word on the street says you're looking for those three little troublemakers, Lock, Shock, and Barrel."

"Yes, we're looking for them," said Jack, pocketing the Spicy Bottle. "Have you seen them?"

"As a matter of fact, I have," said the Tall Witch. "A little before you boys showed up, I noticed them entering Spiral Hill."

"Thanks!" said Jack. "That's just the kind of lead we need!" He turned to Baron and Zero. "Come on, boys. We're going back to the Graveyard!" He then began to run, Zero not too far behind.

"Great," Baron mumbled as he got up. "Out of one heart attack and into another…" He then began to run after Jack and Zero.


	11. The Search for Lock, Shock, and Barrel

**Author's Note**: Uh…yeah. You see, there is a perfectly logical explanation as to why I haven't updated in a while. It's almost Christmas, of course, and that means things everywhere are a lot busier. Man, I've gotta get some better excuses…

Anyway, I do have a favor to ask. I've created a poll for my profile page. There, you can vote on which "Ed Edd n Eddy/Nightmare Before Christmas Crossover" story is your favorite. Go to my profile page to vote for your favorite! Happy reading! ;)-**AMX**

* * *

Chapter 10: The Dark Graveyard: The Search for Lock, Shock, and Barrel

"My goodness…" said Double D. "What a terrifying ordeal."

"Can I get an exploding mushroom, too?" asked Ed.

"Ed, why would you want one of those?" asked Eddy.

"One of what?" asked Ed.

Eddy groaned.

"So…uh…what happened next?" asked Double D.

"Well, after that, we went to find Lock, Shock, and Barrel," said Jack.

"Oh, yeah," said Baron. "That wasn't much of a heart attack; more like a headache, if you ask me…"

* * *

"Geez…" said Baron, once again looking around the Graveyard. "This is starting to feel like a merry-go-round…"

"Well, the faster we corner those kids, the faster we stop all this madness," said Jack. Suddenly, he stopped.

"What's up?" asked Baron.

"That's odd," said Jack. "Does it seem…darker here to you?"

Baron looked around. Jack was right. The whole area seemed to be less well lit than before…

BANG!

Baron jumped. "What the heck?"

"And I'll bet anything that _that _sound is the cause of the dimming," said Jack. "Come on!"

"Fine," Baron grumbled. "But if the bug's bigger than me, I'm out!"

However, it was not a bug making the banging sound. Rather, it was a large, walking bathtub with three brats in it. The bathtub was repeatedly slamming into a street lamp, the source of light in the Graveyard.

"HEY!" Baron yelled.

Just as he did, the street lamp's bulb shattered, pouring darkness throughout the whole Graveyard. All the trio could hear was the sound of giggling, then somebody running down the path in front of them.

"Great…" said Baron. "Now what?"

"So _that's _why it's so dark here," said Jack, cautiously beginning to walk down the path again. "We need to go after them!"

"How?" asked Baron, following Jack and Zero. "I can barely see my hand in front of my face!"

"Well, this path only goes one way," said Jack. "That helps."

"In that case, you keep leading," said Baron.

---

"Oh," said Jack. "Look who it is!"

Baron looked. A little further down the path was the Mayor.

"Mayor!" said Jack, running up to him. "Did you see a walking bathtub around here?"

"Yes, I did," said the Mayor; he sounded disgusted. "Those three troublemakers are going all over the Graveyard and breaking the street lamps. Nobody can see!"

"Well, _duh_," said Baron.

"Luckily, I just happen to have an extra Bat Lamp with me," said the Mayor, handing it to Jack. "I'm sure you'll put it to good use."

"Did they go deeper into the Graveyard?" asked Jack.

"Yes, they did!" said the Mayor. "When you find them, put their lights out with the Frog Gun!"

"Oh, great," said Baron. "More puns…"

---

"I'm guessing this isn't going to be easy," said Baron.

"Well, like I said, the path's one-way," said Jack. "But…there are plenty places to hide around here…"

"So it _isn't_going to be easy," said Baron. "HEY! I SEE THEM!"

Further down the path was a silhouette of the walking bathtub. Baron leapt into the air and landed right on…just that. A silhouette.

"Oh, no…" said Jack. "A decoy!"

"You think there's more of them?" Baron asked, picking himself up.

"Knowing them?" asked Jack. "Yes."

"Great," Baron grumbled.

"Well, your technique seems effective in getting rid of the decoys," said Jack. "I'm sure if we keep it up, we'll find them in no time!"

"In that case, I hope we find them soon," said Baron. "That hurt!"

---

So Baron, Jack, and Zero explored further down the path, exposing any decoys they could find (albeit in a less painful fashion), until they got to a large barrier.

"Now what?" asked Baron.

"Well, do you think we missed any decoys?" asked Jack.

Suddenly…

"CHARGE!"

The walking bathtub zipped right past the trio, crashing through the barrier and continuing down the path.

"Uh…" said Baron. "Oh-kaaaaay…"

"Well, that was easy," said Jack. "I think they're headed toward Spiral Hill!" He began running down the path again, followed by Zero.

"Spiral Hill?" asked Baron, following them. "Why do they call it that?"

---

When they got to Spiral Hill, Baron got his answer. The tip of the hill looped over the side, causing it to end in a huge spiral.

"You got a plan?" Baron asked Jack.

"We just need to chase them for a little longer," said Jack. "This leads to a dead end!"

"Dead end," said Baron. "And we're in a Graveyard…funny how things like that can happen, isn't it?"

Sure enough, as the trio continued down Spiral Hill (and as Baron got a demonstration on how the end of the hill could stretch out into a ramp), they soon came upon a dead end, where three brats in a tub were cornered.

The three children nervously looked at Jack and Baron.

"Uh…hi Jack," said Lock.

"And…Jack's friend," said Shock.

"How are you guys doing?" asked Barrel.

"None of your business!" said Baron. "And don't you play innocent with us. The jig is up!"

"Why are you trying to ruin Halloween?" asked Jack.

"Uh…" said Shock.

"What do we say?" Lock asked the others.

"How should I know?" asked Barrel. "The boss never told us we'd get caught…"

"Boss?" asked Baron.

"Now you've done it!" said Shock.

The three children in the tub started bickering with each other.

"Geez," said Baron as he and Jack watched the scene in front of them. "Kinda reminds me of my brother and me…"

"Who is your boss?" Jack asked.

The three brats' "conversation" was stopped cold.

"Uh…here, Jack!" said Shock. "Have a present!"

A box wrapped in a ribbon was tossed out from the tub and landed right in front of Jack and Baron.

"A…present?" asked Jack.

"Ooh, don't mind if I do!" said Baron, running over to the present and ripping the lid off it.

Seeing an opportunity, Lock, Shock, and Barrel zipped out past the distracted trio.

"Hey!" Baron exclaimed, looking inside the package. "There's nothing in here!"

"And even worse…" said Jack. "They're gone!"

Baron looked around. "UGH!" he groaned. "Why do I always fall for that?!"

"Hey, there's something in the way!" Lock's voice was heard saying a few feet down the path.

"Who cares?" asked Shock.

"Yeah, ram it!" said Barrel.

A few seconds later, the Mayor was rolling down toward the trio, yelling all the way.

"I'm guessing_that's _what was in the way," said Baron.

"Are you all right, Mayor?" asked Jack.

"Don't worry about me," said the Mayor, getting up. "They're getting away! Please hurry!"

"Right!" said Jack, running in the same direction the tub was heading. Baron and Zero followed.

---

"Aw, _man_!" said Baron, looking at the sight before him. "They've thought of_everything_!"

Baron had good reason to be upset; a little past Spiral Hill, Lock, Shock, and Barrel has placed a giant tombstone right in the middle of the path, preventing the team from going any further.

"Then we'll have to go back the way we came and find another way around," said Jack.

"Huh?" Baron asked. "But…you said that was a dead end!"

"For _them_," said Jack. "You'll see what I mean. Come on!"

Soon, the trio found themselves back at the dead end.

"All right," said Baron. "We're here. Now what?"

"Prepare to be amazed," said Jack, taking out his Spicy Bottle.

"Oh-ho!" said Baron. "Finally gonna test that stuff out?"

Jack didn't answer him; instead, he downed half of the contents in the bottle.

What happened next was something of a blur to Baron. Suddenly, instead of Jack standing beside him, there was a giant scarecrow…on fire! The scarecrow suddenly leapt through the air and dove right into the wall; surprisingly, the fire easily destroyed it. Then the next thing Baron knew, Jack was standing on the other side of the scorched wall, a few small burning pieces of clothing falling off his black-and-white pinstripe suit.

A dumbstruck Baron walked through the new path and stopped right in front of Jack.

Jack smiled at Baron's expression. "Impressive, no?" he asked.

"That was awesome…" Baron murmured as a response.

"Yes, it was, wasn't it?" Jack asked. Then he turned around. His expression changed. "Hey, that's odd," he said. "That door looks like one I saw in Dr. Finkelstein's lab."

Baron looked around Jack. Sure enough, there was a big, metal door there. He then turned around at the singed remains of the original wall behind them.

"Man," he said. "How'd that stuff burn so easily?"

"Well, that wall _was_made of bone," said Jack. Baron whipped his head back around to Jack as he continued. "I feel bad now. Someone must have put a lot of work into arranging those."

"You mean, arrange a bunch of bleached body parts?" asked Baron, somewhat disgusted.

Jack walked to the door and opened it. "It's a dirty job, Baron," he said. "But somebody's gotta do it." With that, he and Zero walked through the door.

Baron stared for a moment. "Eh," he muttered, shrugging; he then followed the others through the door. "I'm just glad it ain't me."


	12. Asssitance for the Assistant

Chapter 11: Assistance for the Assistant: The Lab Fights Back

"Okay, so Jack burst through the wall with his Pumpkin King costume, and you guys found the door to the Doc's place," said Eddy. "_Then _what happened?"

"Well…" said Baron. "When we got there, it seemed that the Doc was having a few technical difficulties…"

* * *

"Hmm…" Baron observed as he followed Jack and Zero. "Yeah, this place is _reeking _of the Doc's Lab…" 

"Indeed…" said Jack. "The only thing that seems to be missing from the vicinity is the Doctor!"

"You don't think the bugs came back, do you?" asked Baron.

"I don't think so," said Jack. "Because I think they know what would happen if they did."

"We'd come back and go RAID™ on them?" asked Baron.

"What?" asked Jack.

"Never mind," said Baron. Just then, he saw something. "Hey, what's _this _gate lead to?"

Jack looked at the gate, too. There appeared to be something behind it… "We'll have to come back to that later," he said. "Right now, I want to find the Doctor. You know, make sure he's okay."

Baron shrugged. "Hey, you're the boss," said Baron. "I'm just following you and looking cool."

"Jack!"

Suddenly, the trio looked ahead of them and saw none other than Doctor Finkelstein a few feet in front of them, sitting outside a giant door that most likely was the entrance to his lab.

"Doctor?" asked Jack, walking up to the small wheelchair-bound scientist. "What are you doing out here? Your lab hasn't been infested again, has it?"

"Let's hope not…" Baron mumbled.

"No, that's not my problem…" said the Doctor. "Listen, I'm glad you boys are here. It appears that my assistant, Igor, is missing. Also…I seem to have locked myself out of the lab, and I don't have my key with me."

"What, you don't keep one under the mat?" asked Baron.

"So, I'm guessing you'd like us to find Igor for you?" asked Jack. "Don't worry, Doctor; we'll find him for you."

"Oh, thank you!" said the Doctor. "The last time I saw him, I had sent him over to my second lab. I'm sure he's still…"

"Hold up," said Baron. "_Second _lab? Why do you need two labs?"

"I'm a busy man, boy," was all the Doctor said. "Also, be careful. My security system appears to be temperamental at the moment…"

"In other words, it's haywire," said Baron.

"Yes, I suppose it could be interpreted that way," said the Doctor. "Anyway, since you're most likely going to be battling my security system on your search for Igor, I'm willing to upgrade your Frog Gun for you, Jack."

"Really?" asked Jack, a surprised expression on his face. "Uh…okay!"

As the Doctor worked with Jack's Frog Gun, Baron looked around. A little further down the path, he thought he saw the top of the Doc's second lab. It was then that Baron noticed that faint noises could be heard from the structure. Noises that sounded like…electricity crackling and metal grinding against metal. Baron involuntarily shuddered.

"Uh…are you sure this Igor guy can't take care of himself?" he asked, turning back to Jack and the Doctor.

"Nonsense!" said Jack. "If someone's in need of rescuing, it's only natural for us to help them."

The Doctor handed back the Frog Gun. "There you go," he said. "Now it should really pack a punch. Literally!"

"Thanks," said Jack. "Come on, boys! Let's go find Igor!" With that, he ran down the path toward the second lab, followed by Zero.

"Yeah, and while we're at it, let's not get decapitated or electrocuted, too," Baron mumbled.

---

"We're all gonna die…" Baron moaned when he saw the interior of the second lab. Giant buzz saws rose up from the floor, and giant metal orbs had large amounts of electricity being zapped between them. Not only that, there was still a good majority of bugs roaming around the rooms.

"Oh, come now," said Jack. "It's not _that _bad."

"Yeah, easy for you to say," said Baron. "You're not in danger of getting something cut off or fried!"

Jack paused. "Hmm…I suppose you have a point," he said. "Perhaps now is a good time to test the limits of a now upgraded Frog Gun."

Jack took a few steps forward, then opened up the Frog Gun. However, unlike before, when just a small puff of Frog's Breath would shoot out of the gun, a_huge _cloud of the green stuff quickly enveloped the room. Baron covered his nose and mouth just in time. When the green, murky fog finally cleared, the trio saw that every bug in the vicinity had collapsed.

"Well…there's one problem down," said Jack.

"Yeah, and still a million more death traps to go," said Baron.

"Hey, the sooner we find Igor, the sooner we can get out of here," said Jack.

"Fine by me," said Baron. "In that case, _you _lead."

---

Thankfully, since Jack was very good at dodging things, he was able to show Baron the ways around the "death trap" that was the Doctor's security system. Soon after a bunch of rooms, filled with a bunch more buzz saws, electricity bolts, and bugs, they came to a large room with clawed tentacles jutting out from the ceiling.

"Well…" Baron panted. "That's more excitement than I wanted to have tonight…"

"Help!"

"Huh?" Baron and Jack asked at the same time. They both looked up. Above them, suspended upside-down by one of the clawed tentacles was Igor!

"There he is!" said Jack. "The security system got them!"

Suddenly, a tentacle swooped down and almost hit Baron.

"WHOOP!" said Baron, dodging the tentacle. "So, how do we…" he paused as he dodged another tentacle attack. "…Get him down from there?"

Jack looked around. "Looks like the only way we can help is if we can shut down this security system," he said.

"How?" asked Baron.

"Igor!" Jack called up to the humpbacked man. "Do you know where the central control panel for the security system is?"

"Yes!" said Igor. "Next room! Fix bugs!"

"Thanks!" said Jack. He turned to Baron. "You hear that? It's almost over. Nothing to get upset about." He began to run over to the door that led to the next room over, dodging tentacles all the while.

"Yeah?" Baron asked, following Jack. "Tell that to my stomach…"

---

Baron gaped at the next room they were in. It was full of massive computers, which no doubt powered everything in both of the Doctor's labs. But what was most surprising was in the middle of the room: a giant bug was chomping on a group of wires protruding from a giant metal box!

"WHAT THE HECK?!" Baron exclaimed.

"I bet that box controls the security system!" said Jack. "Quick, Baron! Get out your Cherry Bombs!"

Baron took out a handful of Cherry Bombs and threw them at the bug; at the same time, Jack opened the Frog Gun. After that, the air was once again filled with a murky, green fog, while a clutter of small explosions was heard.

When the fog cleared, the bug that had been wreaking havoc with the security system was nowhere to be seen.

"Well…that was easier than I thought it would be…" said Baron.

"Things usually are," said Jack. "Come on! Let's get Igor and head back to the Doctor!"

---

Soon, Jack, Baron, and Zero found themselves back in front of the Doctor's first lab with the Doctor himself and Igor.

"Thank you for helping Igor out of my nasty security system, boys," said Dr. Finkelstein. "By the way, while I was waiting for you, I found a door in my backyard. I unlocked a gate that was in front of it. I was hoping it would be a clue that could help you end all this madness…"

"Hey, I bet that was the same gate we saw before!" said Baron.

"Any lead would be appreciated right now," said Jack. "Thanks for everything, Doctor!"

"See ya again, Crazy!" Baron called to the Doctor as he and Jack ran back to the place with the gate.

Dr. Finkelstein shook his head. "Oh, that Jack," he said to Igor. "Such a nice boy, but he always makes the _strangest _friends…"

Igor nodded in agreement.

---

Baron, Jack, and Zero stared at the new door in front of them.

"You know where this leads?" asked Baron.

"Nope," said Jack. "But there's only one way to find out!"

Baron shrugged. "Do the honors."

With that, Jack opened the double doors, wondering where in Halloween Town they would lead.


	13. Blah, Blah, Blah

**Author's Note**: (Checks the "Last Updated" date) **Sigh**…I took a five-month hiatus from this story…I know I needed it, but still, I feel so bad. I had to keep all of you waiting. Well, I plan to update a lot over the summer. And if I don't, I apologize in advance. Quite honestly, I'd like to get this story done as soon as possible. Anyway, on a lighter note…I hope I keep getting good reviews for this story. For the first time in five months, happy reading! ;)-**AMX**

* * *

Chapter 12: Blah, Blah, Blah: A Chapter to Sink Your Teeth Into

"Don't stop the story!" said Ed. "Where did the door go to?"

"More importantly, did you get closer in stopping Oogie?" asked Double D.

"Yeah, Bro!" said Eddy. "Don't leave us hanging!"

"Okay, okay…" said Baron. "Well, to be honest, the door led to…"

* * *

"My house?" asked Jack.

"You mean you had a door in your house that led to the Doc's lab and didn't even know about it?" asked Baron.

"Eh…" Jack hesitated. He honestly didn't have an answer to that one. Suddenly, he noticed something else. "Hey…something's not right."

"What?" asked Baron.

"Doesn't it seem a little…hazy in here to you?" asked Jack.

Baron looked a little closer. "Now that you mention it…yeah," he said. "Is it normally like this?"

"No," said Jack. "We'd better take a look around."

"Fine by me," said Baron.

Baron and Jack were in a lower part of Jack's house. They figured it would be a good start for them to start looking around on top. While looking for a way back up, they found a bug with a red back. Above the bug was a ledge that led to upstairs.

"Should I get rid of him?" asked Baron.

"Hold on," said Jack. "Let me try something."

Jack slowly walked up to the bug, and then jumped onto its back. Surprisingly, he bounced up to the ledge!

Baron stood there, stunned.

"Try it!" Jack called down. "It's fun!"

Baron cautiously walked up to the bug and also bounced on its back. He landed on the ledge, next to Jack.

"Well…that works," said Baron. He then realized something: it seemed to be getting harder and harder to see. "Hey, what gives?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," said Jack. "But whatever it is, I don't like it. Come on!"

--

Soon, Jack and Baron found themselves at the front of Jack's house, where they found a surprise: the Mayor, along with…a vampire?

"Mayor!" said Jack. "What are you doing here? And with one of the Vampire Brothers?"

"Brothers?" asked Baron. "There's more?"

"Oh, Jack!" said the Mayor. "It's horrible! The poor Vampire Brother has lost his insanity!"

"What?" asked Baron. "Don't you mean he lost his _sanity_?"

"No, his _in_sanity," the Mayor corrected. "He's not even talking about feasting on blood anymore!"

"Feast on blood?" asked the Vampire Brother. "What a preposterous thought! Besides, I'm a vegetarian."

Jack just stared at the Vampire Brother, shocked. Baron snorted, then put his hands over his face.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I know I shouldn't laugh…"

"This is horrible!" said Jack. "You wouldn't happen to know the cause of this, would you, Mayor?"

"Well, all I know is that he started talking like that after he got caught in this weird purple smoke," said the Mayor.

"Then that must be the cause," said Jack. "We've got to figure out where this smoke is coming from."

"Good thinking, Jack," said the Mayor. "But be careful. We wouldn't want the smoke to get to you as well. As for your friend, well…since he doesn't seem to be from Halloween Town, I don't think he'll be affected."

"Cool," said Baron.

"Also, for security reasons, I closed all the doors in your house," said the Mayor. "I hooked it up so the only way to open the doors is by lighting the lamps in your house. So you have to be quick about it!"

"Thanks," said Jack. "Come on, Baron. I don't even wanna think about what would happen if this smoke got to the rest of Halloween Town…"

"Honestly, neither do I," said Baron.

--

Baron and Jack were trying to make their way through Jack's house as quickly as possible. However, it wasn't easy. Since all the lamps in Jack's house were off, it was hard to see; the smoky haze throughout the whole house didn't help, either. Plus, there were a lot of large gaps around Jack's house, and another infestation of bugs…

In short, Baron's patience was wearing thin.

"So, uh…any idea what we're supposed to be looking for?" Baron asked, mostly to distract himself from his own frustration.

"No," said Jack. "But whatever it is, I hope we get to it, fast. I'm not sure how much more of this stuff I can take…"

Baron thought for a moment. Then, he remembered something. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief.

"Here," he said, holding it out to Jack. "Hopefully, it'll work as a filter."

Jack smiled. "Thanks," he said, taking the handkerchief and tying it around his mouth and nose. "What made you think of that?"

"Oh, one time, there was this big flu bug going around my neighborhood," said Baron. "My mom didn't want me getting sick, so she had me wear one. Had my brother wear one, too. Got pretty good at tying them."

"Really…" said Jack. He paused. "Well, with all the bugs around, I'm guessing there's a boss somewhere around here."

"So, where would it be?" asked Baron.

"Well, since the fog has basically spread throughout the whole house, it's probably a big creature," said Jack. "So it would have to be situated in a rather large room in the area. I doubt it would be outside since Mayor locked all the doors…" Jack paused, thinking. "I know!" he said. "Let's try the attic! It's fairly big."

"I should hope so…" said Baron. "Considering how big the rest of this place is…"

--

"Okay, we're here," said Jack.

Baron looked around. Jack was right; the attic was _huge_. "Well, now all we need to do is look for anything that might be causing the smoke, right?"

"Right," said Jack.

Baron looked around. Then he looked up. "Uh…Jack?" he asked.

"What?" asked Jack.

"I think I found the problem."

Jack looked up, too. On the ceiling was a giant moth! Even worse, the same purple smoke that was causing all the problems was seeping out of its mouth.

"Yeah, I'd say you did," said Jack.

Suddenly, without warning, the moth swooped down and tried to slam down on the two boys!

"Any ideas?" asked Baron.

"Well…" said Jack, "I'm not sure if I can get too close, at least when the smoke is really thick. Baron, you'll have to attack first."

Baron looked at the large moth. He snorted again. "Great…" he muttered. "Okay, I'll see what I can do. But I can't promise anything…" he added under his breath.

Baron figured that the best way to make the moth stop emitting the smoke was by distracting it temporarily. So, he took his Silly String and sprayed it right into the moth's eyes when it got too close. This gave Jack some time to shoot the moth with the Frog Gun.

However, after a few times executing this strategy, the moth began getting more and more cut up. And as it did, a green substance began dripping out of the moth's body.

"Uh…Baron?" asked Jack. "I think we might have another problem."

"What?" asked Baron.

The green substance began to fill the room, making a sizzling sound as it rose.

"That's acid!" said Jack. "And I don't think either of us will benefit from it."

"Oh, ya think?" asked Baron. "Now what do we do?"

"We keep attacking," said Jack. "We just need to be a little more careful, is all."

"Lovely…" mumbled Baron.

In short, the moth was a little tougher to reach since the pool of acid was slowly rising below the two heroes. However, when the moth swooped down one final time, they got lucky: as Jack hit it one last time with the Frog Gun, Baron threw a handful of Cherry Bombs into its mouth.

The whole room erupted into a mixture of purple and green dust, along with remnants of Silly String. The shock also safely drained all the acid from Jack's house (lucky break, huh?).

Baron sighed with relief. "Finally…" he muttered. "Never did like moths. Clothes-eating pests…"

"Come on!" said Jack. "Now that the smoke is cleared, I bet the Vampire Brother is back to his old self!" He began to run to the other side of the room, which had a door that Jack knew led back down to the entrance of his house.

However, Baron was a little hesitant. "Hey, Jack," he called as he followed the skeleton. "Is that a good thing?"

--

"Jack, what happened?" the Vampire Brother asked the duo when they had returned to the entrance of Jack's house.

"Oh, nothing big," said Jack. "By the way…what comes to mind when I say the word 'blood'?"

"Just lunch," said the Vampire Brother. "Why?"

"Yes!" said Jack. "He's back to normal!"

"Oh, aren't we lucky," said Baron, who was slightly grossed out by the conversation.

"Well, I'm not sure what you're talking about," said the Vampire Brother, "but Dr. Finkelstein was here a moment ago. He asked me to give you something." He handed a small, black object to Jack.

"Yes!" said Jack.

"What is it?" asked Baron.

"It's an upgrade for the Bat Boomerang," Jack explained. "This should help us out a lot. I have to remember to thank the Doctor."

"Say, Jack," said Baron, "weren't we doing something else for the Doc?"

"Huh?" asked Jack. He thought for a moment. "Oh, that's right! We still need to find that "Sally" person for the Doctor!"

"Man, if only we could catch those three little brats," said Baron. "I bet they could tell us where she is…"

"You mean Lock, Shock, and Barrel?" asked the Vampire Brother. "Well, if they're any part of all the madness that's been happening, I suggest you investigate the Tree House."

"The Tree House?" asked Jack.

"It's an old, abandoned building on the outskirts of Town," the Vampire Brother explained. "From what I've heard, those three are often spotted near it. There's a gate on the edge of Halloween Town that leads to the Tree House."

"Thanks," said Jack. He turned to Baron. "Come on, Baron. The sooner we find those three little troublemakers, the sooner we can save Halloween and stop Oogie!"

With that, Jack began to walk back toward Halloween Town Square.

"Yeah," said Baron, following Jack. "Who gives this "Oogie" guy the right to spoil everyone's fun? And more importantly, _mine_?"


	14. Crawloween

Chapter 13: Crawloween: The Guy in Charge of the Madness

"Goodness," said Double D. "It certainly took you two a long time to find Oogie, didn't it?"

"Yeah, it did," said Baron. "I was beginning to think we'd never find him. At least, not in time to save Halloween."

"Well, it's a good thing we never stopped looking," said Jack. "If it wasn't for us, Halloween was going to become _Crawloween_."

"Don't remind me…" Baron groaned.

* * *

"Something tells me we're getting closer," said Jack.

"What tipped you off?" asked Baron. "The fact that all the traps and bugs have increased tenfold?"

"Just be glad that the Clown with the Tear-Away Face was there to give us directions," said Jack.

"Yeah, _after _we found his face," said Baron. "Well, at least he could tell us where Sally was."

"Not only that, he upgraded my Pumpkin Bombs!" said Jack. "Now all that's left to do is find Oogie and put a stop to his shenanigans!"

"And let's hope that's soon," said Baron.

"Oh, it will be," said Jack. "It will be…"

--

The trek to Oogie's Lair wasn't easy. It seemed that every trap and bug the boys had encountered before (minus the "boss bugs") was back to get them. However, there was no way they could back down now: Jack was determined to find Oogie Boogie and make the troublemaker pay for what he was doing to Halloween. That went for Baron, too; Halloween was the only time of the year that he could pull any type of real prank on the unsuspecting! There was no way he could give that up without a fight.

As Jack and Baron seemed to be getting closer and closer to where the action would really be, the traps and the bugs seemed to be getting more plentiful…and dangerous. The boys had to use every trick they had to get through it all. Also, they had to keep in mind that they would have to have enough energy to face Oogie himself. If his bugs were _this _powerful, there was no telling how much of a challenge Oogie would be!

After another round of bugs and traps, Baron looked around. "Is it just me, or do we seem to be going underground?" he asked Jack.

"I'm not surprised," said Jack. "Since the residents of Halloween Town all live on the surface, there wouldn't be anyone else down below to stop anyone from scheming. And I can't lie to you, Baron…this could be very dangerous." Jack stopped walking, and turned to his friend. "Are you sure you're up for this?"

"Hey, you and the other Halloween Town people won't be the only ones suffering if Halloween is taken away," said Baron. "If there's no more Halloween, I won't be able to teach my little brother all the best Halloween pranks! I'm not just gonna take that."

Jack stared at Baron for a moment, then sighed. "Well…if you think you can handle it. Let's go!"

--

The boys headed deeper and deeper into the ground outside Halloween Town, fighting through all the obstacles in their way. Finally, they came across an all-too-familiar bug holding an arrow. The arrow was pointing into the deepest part of the ground.

The boys destroyed the bug with ease.

"This is it," said Jack. "After this, there's no turning back." He looked at Baron. "Are you ready?"

A smug grin appeared on Baron's face. "I was _born_ ready," he said, taking out a fresh can of Silly String.

The two confident boys walked into the underground room. The first thing the boys noticed was that it was incredibly…dark.

Baron looked around. "Okay," he said. "So where is he?"

Baron was answered by a very loud, booming laugh.

"So, you must be Jack, the Pumpkin King!" said a booming voice. "And who's your friend?"

"I'm the Red Baron, prankster extraordinaire!' Baron claimed triumphantly. "And you picked the wrong guys to deal with, buddy boy!"

"Show yourself!" said Jack. "Now!"

"With pleasure!" said the voice.

Suddenly, a single spotlight turned on, shining straight onto a giant potato sack…with a face!

"What the…?" asked Baron.

"I'm the Oogie Boogie Man!" said the giant moving sack. "King of All Bugs!"

"So _you're _the one who's responsible for all this!" said Jack. "Surrender now, Oogie, and we _might _go easy on you!"

"Yeah!" said Baron.

"It's too late for that!" said Oogie. "Halloween Town is mine! And now, I'm free to create my own holiday, _Crawloween_!"

"Not if _we _have anything to say about it!" said Jack.

"This is for almost ruining our fun!" said Baron.

Oogie smirked. "How heroic of both of you," he drawled. "Unfortunately, it's not _me _you'll be fighting at the moment."

Then, without warning, Oogie jumped up to a hidden platform. When it was more properly illuminated, both Jack and Baron were able to see that there was a crank jutting out of the wall.

"NOW!" said Oogie, who had begun to turn the crank. "Zombie Centipede! Get rid of these meddlers!"

At the far end of the room, something slithered out of the darkness. It was a monstrous, bright green centipede!

"Oh, great," Baron mumbled. "What do we do?!"

Jack hesitated for a moment. However, it was only a moment, for the centipede unexpectedly lashed out at the two heroes. On pure reflex, Jack threw a barrage of Bat Boomerangs at the creature. As he dodged, Jack noticed something odd: when the Bat Boomerangs hit the segments of the Zombie Centipede's body, they turned grey.

"Baron!" Jack called to his friend. "I think I have an idea! Aim your attacks at the centipede's body!"

"Way ahead of ya!" said Baron. He took out a handful of Eggs and began pelting the Zombie Centipede's body.

Because of the plentiful showering of Bat Boomerangs and Eggs, it wasn't long until the Zombie Centipede's entire body was completely grey. The monster's grey body suddenly began to shudder, and then…it fell apart, leaving only the head.

Oogie growled from atop his post. "You think you've won, haven't you?" he asked. "Well, you're _wrong_. My Zombie Centipede has one last trick up its sleeve!"

That being said, the bug head suddenly began to change shape. It no longer had a visible face; it was just one big eyeball!

"Okay," said Baron, "that's just gross."

The Centipede Eyeball slowly floated around the area, after Jack and Baron; somehow, it was even able to throw smaller eyeballs at the two heroes!

"Any ideas?" Baron asked.

"We basically have the thing surrounded," said Jack. It was true; Jack was positioned on one side of the eyeball, and Baron the other. "Keep hammering it! It can't last forever!"

Then, without warning, the Centipede Eyeball was suddenly at a disadvantage. If it went one way, it was met with more Bat Boomerangs, followed by an attack from a supercharged Frog Gun; if it went the other way, it was pelted with Eggs, followed by being covered in a cloud of Silly String. After a while, it seemed to be wearing down.

"One last strong attack ought to do it!" said Jack. He took out a Pumpkin Bomb (which were now significantly larger thanks to Clown). "Ready?" he asked Baron.

"Ready!" said Baron, taking out a handful of Cherry Bombs.

The duo threw their bombs at the creature at the same time. It instantaneously burst into flames.

"WHAT?!" said Oogie, looking down at the spot where his Zombie Centipede _used _to be. He shot a glare at Jack and Baron. "Well…you two are certainly formidable opponents," he glowered. "You two may have won this time, but this isn't over! Not by a long shot!"

"Deal with it, dude," said Baron. "It is _so _over."

"Leave Halloween Town at once!" Jack commanded.

"NEVER!" Oogie shouted back.

"Mister Oogie!"

Jack and Baron's attention was directed toward the far side of the area. It was Lock, Shock, and Barrel in their Walking Tub.

"Mister Oogie!" said Lock.

"We fixed the elevator!" said Shock.

"And not a moment too soon!" said Barrel.

"Ah, my hired hands," said Oogie. "I thank you." He turned back to Jack and Baron. "If you two imbeciles actuallythink you'll be able to stop me, I'll be waiting in my _real _lair…with a rag doll! See you soon…not!"

With that, Oogie fled, along with his three henchmen.

"Rag doll?" Baron asked, confused.

"He must mean Sally!" said Jack. "We have to follow him! I refuse to have anyone else hurt because of him!"

"I'm right behind you!" said Baron.

With that, the duo ran after the giant sack of bugs, and his three bratty helpers.

The boys soon found themselves in another room. The only thing in it was a fair-sized cage.

"What's going on?" asked Baron. "Where'd they go?"

Jack took a closer look at the cage. "Hey, this isn't just a cage," he said. "This is an elevator! This must be the one those three troublemakers were talking about!"

"You think they went up?" Baron asked.

"I'll bet my bones they did," said Jack, stepping into the elevator. "Come on! We can't let them get away!"

"Of course we can't," said Baron, stepping into the elevator. The cage slowly began to rise to the surface. As it did, one thought crossed Baron's mind:

'_The sooner all this craziness can end, the better_.'


	15. Unpleasant Surprises

Chapter 14: Unpleasant Surprises: Treehouse Tub Chase

"So you guys finally found Oogie, but he got away from you?" asked Eddy. "I bet that was frustrating."

"Oh, it was," said Jack. "But at least we were able to handle him a serious blow."

"I'm guessing you guys went to the Treehouse next," said Double D. "Were you able to defeat him there?"

"Well, we didn't see Oogie there," said Baron. "But if I recall correctly, we got some hints from the next best thing…"

* * *

"Hey, if this is a Treehouse, how come we're going underground?" Baron asked as he, Jack, and Zero continued down the same path they were guessing Oogie had gone down.

"I'm guessing that the Treehouse is just a cover-up," said Jack. "The _real _action is happening underground."

"For everyone's sake, I sure hope so," said Baron.

--

As it turns out, Jack was right. The entire underground area of the Treehouse was infested with all new types of bugs, and was heavily laden with traps; namely, a good amount of axes and knives jutting out from all the walls.

Also, even worse, the underground area was covered with hidden firecrackers. If they were touched, the firecrackers would take off right after the trio!

A few rooms down, however, they encountered something else. And it was more annoying than any of the bugs they had seen.

"Hi, boys!" said Lock, Shock, and Barrel from the safety of their walking bathtub.

Baron looked at Jack; the skeleton didn't look too happy.

"All right, you three," said Jack. "The jig is up! Where's Sally?"

"We can't tell you!" said Lock.

"Why not?" asked Baron.

"Mister Oogie told us not to!" said Shock.

"Or else he'd beat us up!" said Barrel.

Baron's eyes widened. "Your boss threatened bodily harm against you guys and you're still working for him?" he asked. "Are you impaired?"

"Never mind Oogie," said Jack. "It's _me _they should be worried about."

The three children stared in shock (no pun intended) for a second, most likely because of Jack's comment. Then…

"RUN FOR IT!" the three of them said together.

The tub began running in the opposite direction.

"Darn it!" said Jack. "Come on!"

With that, the skeleton began running after the tub, followed by Baron and Zero.

--

"What do we do once we get these guys cornered?" Baron asked as he and Jack were climbing up a ladder.

"We get them to tell us what happened to Sally," said Jack. "By any means necessary."

"Hey," Baron began, a new thought coming to him, "you don't think Oogie would _hurt _Sally, would you?"

"He better not have," said Jack. "Or I'm _really _going to be angry."

By this point, they were at the top of the ladder. They began to continue down the path that was there.

"Wow," said Baron. "You're willing to do all that for Sally and you don't even _know _her?"

"It doesn't matter if I know her or not," said Jack. "I believe that any citizen of Halloween Town is to be treated with respect, no matter who-or what-they are. Surely you would agree?"

"Well…yeah," said Baron. "I agree. It's just…I guess you could say that's not exactly something that's played out a lot where I'm from."

"Oh…" said Jack. "Well, if it makes you feel any better, you can always stay here in Halloween Town…"

"What?" asked Baron. "Thanks, but no thanks, buddy. I kinda have a life back where I live. Plus, I couldn't abandon my little brother like that. He thinks the world of me."

"Oh, I see…" said Jack. "Hey, look!"

Baron looked. A little ahead of them was Lock, Shock, and Barrel. They were arguing about something.

"Darn it!" said Lock. "Whose bright idea was it to go this way?!"

"Well, don't look at me!" said Shock. "_You're _the one who's steering!"

"Guys, wait!" said Barrel. "This is the room with all those…nasty _surprises_."

The trio, realizing their "good choice," began laughing. Then they continued further down the path.

"Surprises?" Jack asked, coming out from his hiding place. "Like what?"

"Well, knowing them, it probably won't be easy," said Baron.

"I know," said Jack. "That's why we can't stop now!"

"Well, duh," said Baron.

With that, the trio of do-gooders continued down the path, hoping they would be able to get some answers, and furthermore, get them easily.

--

Unfortunately, the path to Lock, Shock, and Barrel wasn't that easy. The next few rooms were filled with giant pillars made of the biggest skulls Baron had ever seen in his life, which slammed down to the ground from above.

Needless to say, following Lock, Shock, and Barrel was a _little _bit difficult.

But our heroes finally made it through the dangerous rooms, and soon found another ladder, which most likely led to the three brats.

"Okay, this is it," said Jack. "You ready?"

"Yeah," Baron panted (he just happened to be worn out from all the running). "Just give me a second for my heart to restart."

Jack smiled. "Always a kidder," he said. "Come on!" With that, he began to make his way up the ladder.

Baron sighed. "Apparently, nobody in Halloween Town has heard of sarcasm…" he mumbled as he followed Jack up the ladder.

As it turns out, the three brats happened to be in the room that was at the top of the ladder. But they weren't going down without a fight.

"Uh oh!" said Lock.

"It's them!" said Shock.

"Deploy the traps!" said Barrel.

Then the bathtub ran away with the tree brats in it.

"Traps?" asked Baron.

Suddenly, a bed of spikes popped out of the ground, right in front of them.

"Oh, man…" said Baron.

"We can't let that slow us down," said Jack. "We have to go after them!"

"Of course…" said Baron.

--

Surprisingly, despite protests from Baron ("I don't suppose you wouldn't mind carrying the weight of, say, an average-sized boy on your back, would you, Jack?"), chasing the brats was relatively easy. In fact, the brats were so busy trying to get away from the heroes, they actually sprang their own traps onto themselves. By the time everyone had reached the end of the room, the brats and their bathtub had sustained substantial damage.

"There they go!" Baron yelled as the brats slunk into one last room.

"We've got 'em now!" said Jack.

Sure enough, the heroes cornered the brats in the final room. For good measure, Baron pointed a fully loaded Silly String at them.

"This is the last time I'm going to ask nicely," Jack spoke in a quiet, controlled voice. "Where is Sally?"

The three children hung their heads. "Sorry, Jack," they said together.

"Oogie has her," said Lock.

"And we feel bad about tricking you," said Shock.

"So…here's a present!" said Barrel.

With that, a present was tossed out of the bathtub. It landed at Baron's feet.

"Oh, no!" said Baron. "We're not falling for that again!"

"Really?" asked Lock.

"Well, who said…" said Shock.

"…That was the trick?" Barrel finished.

"SMOKE BOMB!"

Before anyone knew it, the entire room was engulfed in smoke.

"Hurry!" Baron heard through the haze. "We can escape to Oogie's Lair through the ducts!"

Soon, the smoke cleared enough that Baron and Jack were able to make out the room.

"You heard what they said, right?" Baron asked.

"Yes, I did," said Jack. "If we find those ducts, we find Oogie!"

That's when they saw it: a set of air ducts on the far side of the room. They ran over to it.

"You think this is it?" Baron asked.

"Only one way to find out," said Jack. "Zero, you're on!"

Jack's ghost dog barked happily, then floated into the ducts.

"Come on!" said Jack. "The faster we go, the sooner we get to Oogie!" He crawled into the ducts after Zero.

"Yeah," said Baron. He looked down at himself, then to the duct before climbing in himself. "Provided that we don't get stuck along the way."


	16. Final Battle, Part 1

Chapter 15: Final Battle, Part 1: Boogie Time!

"I presume Oogie was on the other side of the vents?" asked Double D.

"What kind of question is that, Double D?" asked Eddy. "Of _course _Oogie was on the other side of the vents! They wouldn't be telling us this story if he wasn't." He paused, and then turned back to his brother and Jack. "He was behind the vents, right?"

"I bet Oogie didn't stand a chance!" said Ed.

"Yes, Oogie was behind the vents," said Baron, answering his brother's question.

"But," said Jack, "nothing could have prepared us for what we were going to encounter deep in that underground area…"

* * *

When Jack, Baron, and Zero exited the vents, they found themselves standing in front of a massive pair of gates.

"So…" said Baron. "Oogie's back there?"

"I would imagine so," said Jack.

"And I'm guessing you're going to do everything in your power to make sure he's stopped," Baron went on.

"You guess right," said Jack. He looked down at his friend. "If you're still thinking of backing out, now's the time to do it…"

"Are you kidding?" asked Baron. "This guy made a big mistake: he got in the way of me and my annual Halloween fun. If anyone gets to kick his butt around here, it's me."

Jack smiled. "I admire your perseverance, Baron," he said.

Baron paused. "I'm going to take that as a compliment," he said.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" asked Jack. "Let's stop that troublemaker Oogie once and for all!"

"I'm right behind you, buddy!" said Baron.

The trio cautiously opened the gate and entered the new area, which seemed to be shaped in a giant circle (the gate surrounded the area). They didn't have to take even two steps when an all-too-familiar booming laugh signaled that the wrongdoer they were looking for was very, very close.

"So, you two actually followed me here?" asked Oogie, who was perched atop a platform that ran around the circular room. "You're either very brave…or very stupid!"

Baron stared at the living sack of bugs. "Dude, why do you put so much energy in making other people hate you?" he asked.

"This is over, Oogie!" said Jack. "Return Halloween Town back to the way it was before!"

"Now, why would I do that?" asked Oogie. "After all, I _am _the King of Halloween!"

"_You_?" Baron asked. "The King of Halloween?!"

"Don't make me laugh!" said Jack.

"You might as well laugh," Oogie drawled. "Because it'll be the last time you'll get the chance…"

Suddenly, the whole room was flooded with light, and Jack, Zero, and Baron were able to see that they were standing on a giant, multicolored roulette wheel! What surprised them even more was when the roulette wheel began to rapidly spin, with the three heroes on it!

"Is this a bad thing?" asked Baron.

"It is if we don't have a strategy," said Jack. "Listen, any time you see an opening, go all out, okay?"

"Okay, but…" Baron paused. Despite the rapid spinning, he was still able to make out a slight problem: the area surrounding the roulette wheel was lined with very long and very pointy-looking spikes! "Can I at least make staying alive my first priority?"

"If you feel the need," Jack responded.

"Oh, I feel the need!" said Baron.

What didn't help matters was the fact that while the heroes were busy trying to maintain their balance, Oogie was bringing out even more obstacles with, literally, the roll of a die (as in, one half of a pair of dice).

However, somewhere amongst all the chaos, Baron began to detect a pattern in Oogie's attack: whenever Oogie rolled a one or a two, large cards depicting suicide kings (a.k.a. the King of Hearts) would emerge from the floor, attempting to slash the heroes with rotating swords. Whenever Oogie rolled a three or four, giant buzz saws lowered from the ceiling, also attempting to slash the heroes. Lastly, whenever Oogie rolled a five or six, he jumped off the platform and attempted to body-slam one of the heroes. Thankfully, so far, no damage had been made. But, the heroes had yet to find a weak spot on Oogie! They were too busy trying to protect themselves from Oogie's relentless barrage of attacks.

Then, Baron detected something else: when Oogie rolled his die, he _leaned over the side of the platform _to do it. He was completely open to attack!

"Jack!" said Baron. "Follow my lead!"

The next time Oogie leaned over to roll his die, Baron threw an Egg; thankfully, it hit its target head-on.

Jack immediately got the idea. He also attacked Oogie at every opportune moment, mainly with multiple Bat Boomerangs, and even a Pumpkin Bomb or two. Baron also did his part with his Eggs and his Silly String.

As the battle raged on, it was evident that Oogie was getting desperate. The attacks suddenly became even more powerful, and therefore even more deadly; one Suicide King card became three, one set of buzz saws became five, and Oogie suddenly became faster with his Body Slam attack.

"Baron!" Jack called to his friend as he threw another round of Bat Boomerangs. "I think we have him on the ropes! One last good shot ought to do it! You got anymore Cherry Bombs?"

Baron checked his pocket; then a smirk appeared on his face (of course, that may have been because he was beginning to get dizzy). "Plenty!" he said.

"Then let him have it!" said Jack.

Baron held a handful of Cherry Bombs tightly as he tried to look for an opening on Oogie. Suddenly, Oogie jumped off the platform to perform another Body Slam. Baron saw his opportunity; as Oogie slammed down onto the roulette wheel (he had missed hitting anyone again), Baron threw the Cherry Bombs at his grotesque body.

They all blew up in Oogie's face.

Apparently, Oogie had been significantly weakened by the attacks, because when the Cherry Bombs exploded, he was blown all the way back to his perch on the platform.

When the final blow was delivered to Oogie, the whole room seemed to shut down. The Suicide Kings and the buzz saws stopped attacking, and the roulette wheel's spinning began to slow down.

When everything was still again, Jack, Baron, and Zero were still poised for attack, while Oogie seemed to be having trouble catching his breath.

"Still think you have a chance, Oogie?" Jack asked. "Surrender now!"

Suddenly, Oogie stood up. "Never," he growled. "I'll never give up! You think you're so clever, don't you?! Well, I'm not done yet! I still have one last card to play!"

"What?!" said Baron.

But it was too late; Oogie had already disappeared down a corridor behind him.

"Hey!" Jack yelled. "Come back here!" He sighed when he realized that Oogie was gone. He turned to Baron. "I can't believe he has the nerve to declare _himself _the Pumpkin King when _I'm _the King."

"I take it this isn't over?" asked Baron.

"Unfortunately…no," said Jack. "It isn't. But it's going to be. It's time we ended this once and for all!"

Baron gave another smirk. "For once, I'm in complete agreement with you, dude," he said.

With that, Jack, Baron, and Zero followed Oogie down the dark corridor to the battle that would decide the entire fate of Halloween.


	17. Final Battle, Part 2

Chapter 16: Final Battle, Part 2: Bug Town Vs. Halloween Town

"So, you guys did all that, and Oogie _still _wasn't giving up?" asked Eddy. "Man, that must've stunk!"

"Well, it was definitely frustrating," said Jack. "It was clear that he wasn't giving up without a fight."

"But he was like that even when _we _fought him, right?" asked Double D.

"Yep!" said Ed.

"But he couldn't have held out for much longer, right?" asked Eddy.

Jack smiled. "Thankfully, he didn't," he said. "This is where the story becomes beneficial for our side…"

* * *

When Jack, Baron, and Zero emerged on the other side of the corridor that Oogie had disappeared down, they found themselves in a massive room with bits of the floor exposing red-hot lava. And, of course, Oogie was right in the middle of it.

"So, you two actually had the sense to follow me?" asked Oogie. "Well, too bad for you! This will be the last Halloween you two will ever see, for tomorrow, Halloween Town will be renamed Bug Town!"

All Baron could do was stand there and stare. "Man, you've got some nerve," he said.

"That's not going to happen!" said Jack. "It's Halloween Town, and I'm the Pumpkin King!"

"So prepare to lose your crown," Baron added.

Oogie said nothing. Instead, he jumped up and landed on a massive insect/machine that appeared to be shaped like a motorcycle.

Jack and Baron were stunned.

"You two may have been able to beat my roulette wheel," Oogie drawled, "but there's no way you can defeat my Oogie-Mobile!"

"When Oogie wins, Halloween Town will become our playground," three familiar voices suddenly chirped together. "For we are…"

"LOCK!"

"SHOCK!"

"BARREL!"

"Prepare to be vanquished!" said Oogie.

Baron stared at the large, lethal-looking contraption with wide eyes. "Any suggestions?" he asked Jack.

"Stay far away from it," said Jack, "and hit it with everything you've got."

"Oh," said Baron. "Well, I could've thought of that."

However, right from the start, the heroes could tell that the battle itself was not going to be easy. With four bad guys controlling the Oogie-Mobile, there was a good chance at multiple attacks.

It was hard attacking from the ground, because Oogie was steering the Oogie-Mobile so it would charge one of the heroes; they took care of that problem from jumping up on some conveniently placed platforms.

But once that problem was solved, another one appeared: Lock popped out of the Oogie-Mobile's interior…and started swinging a very dangerous looking spiked ball around the room!

"Something tells me that our current strategy isn't working too well," said Baron.

"Then it's a good thing I have another one!" Jack answered. "Listen, those three little troublemakers each control a different part of the bug. If we disable each part of the bug one by one, it will be easier to take Oogie himself down permanently!"

Baron turned back to the Oogie-Mobile. He focused on where Lock was. "I've just found our first target!" he said.

The young airplane pilot waited for a clean shot of the little devil-dressed boy, then shot a large spray of Silly String right in Lock's face.

"HEY!" Lock yelled, reaching to take the Silly String off his face. However, to grab his face, he had no choice but to let go of his giant spiked ball!

Jack smiled. "Good work, Baron!" he said. "Now we just need to know what else this thing is capable of, and we'll be even closer to stopping Oogie!"

Just then, as Lock's spiked ball hit the cavernous ground, a large stream of bugs shot up from the ground in different parts of the room. When the bugs cleared, there were now more spots of lava covering the floor, and less space for anyone to run around.

"Well, _this _certainly makes things a lot easier for us!" Baron called out.

Suddenly, Baron heard the giggling of a small girl. He looked at the top of the Oogie-Mobile, and saw Shock poking out of the top.

Shock was holding a large fireworks launcher, and before Baron knew it, there was an assortment of targets locked on the front of his jacket. Baron attempted to run, but soon ran into another problem when the fireworks were launched: the fireworks followed him!

Thankfully, Jack solved the problem with a barrage of Bat Boomerangs.

"Baron!" said Jack. "Do you think you can help me aim a Bat Boomerang right at Shock?"

Baron looked at his position; he was right behind Shock. "Can do!" he said.

Jack threw another three Bat Boomerangs, and Baron was just able to grab one of them. In retaliation, Baron aimed it at Shock, and swiftly threw it. Then, for good measure, he followed it up with an Egg.

Both projectiles hit their mark: the Bat Boomerang made Shock drop the fireworks launcher, while the Egg…just made a mess with her hair.

"Eww…" she muttered as she sunk back into the Oogie-Mobile.

Then, as Shock's fireworks launcher hit the ground, another stream of bugs shot up from the floor. The lava was increasing while the floor itself was decreasing.

"HEY!" said Oogie.

"_Please _tell me we're winning," said Baron.

"Don't worry!" said Jack. "There's just one last defense we have to break through!"

As if on cue, Barrel popped out of the back of the Oogie-Mobile, wielding a giant shield in one hand and a massive wrecking ball in the other.

"Oh, isn't that great?" asked Baron. "They're making it easy for us!"

Jack pondered for a moment. Then he thought of something. "Baron!" he called to his friend. "Distract Barrel!"

Baron took out a roll of Toilet Paper. "It's T.P. time!" he said. He threw the Toilet Paper so it would drape over the top of the Oogie-Mobile.

"Huh?" asked Oogie. "What the…?"

However, Oogie was interrupted when a giant fireball zoomed across the room and streaked the side of the Oogie-Mobile, startling Barrel.

"YIPE!" said Barrel. He dropped the shield and the wrecking ball and zipped back inside the giant bug.

The fireball landed on a platform, and as the flames faded, Jack was revealed in the center of it.

"The Spicy Bottle!" said Baron. "Good thinking!"

Just then, one last stream of bugs shot up from the floor, leaving only a few patches of solid ground left.

Now Oogie was _mad_. "You may have defeated my defenses," he growled, "but I'm not out yet! YOU CAN'T KEEP THIS UP FOREVER!"

Jack and Baron landed next to each other on a platform.

"I hate to admit it," said Jack, "but I think he's right. If we're going to bring Oogie down for good, we need a big finish."

Baron's face lit up. "I think I got just the thing we need." He reached into one of the inside pockets of his jacket, and pulled something out.

Jack was surprised. The item in Baron's hand looked like one of his Cherry Bombs, but there was just one little difference…it was about as big as Jack's head!

"Like it?" asked Baron. "I call it the El-Mongo Cherry Bomb. They don't sell them this big in the stores; I had to make it myself. It was _supposed _to be used for the Big Finish back at home…" Baron paused and turned back to the Oogie-Mobile. "…But I think it'll make a more lasting impression here."

Jack looked at the El-Mongo Cherry Bomb, then back to Baron. "Well…okay," he said. "Just be careful!"

Baron raised an eyebrow. "What are ya, my mom?" he asked. "Relax, buddy!"

Then, Baron jumped down with his creation, and landed right on the nose of the Oogie-Mobile.

"Dude, I got one last thing to say to ya," said Baron. "Game…" Baron (somehow) pried the bug's mouth open. "Set…" Baron threw the El-Mongo Cherry Bomb into the bug's mouth; it snapped shut. "…And match."

With that, Jack quickly swooped down and hopped off the Oogie-Mobile, taking Baron with him.

A deep rumbling sound began to shake the Oogie-Mobile.

"No…" said Oogie, in utter disbelief. "NO!"

Then…

BOOOOOOM!

The remains of the Oogie-Mobile splattered the walls. Meanwhile, as fast as it had disappeared, the floor seemed to cool down and become whole again.

"IT WORKED!" Baron cheered. Then, "Aw, _man_! That would've looked so cool if I had set it off in the old haunted house…"

Meanwhile, a _very _distraught Oogie Boogie found himself stranded in the now-dimmed room. And a _very _angry Jack Skellington marched right up to him.

"Oogie Boogie, you have caused trouble for everyone in Halloween Town thanks to your shenanigans," said Jack, "and because of you, all of our hard work in making this the greatest Halloween ever was almost for naught. How dare you come tonight, of all nights, and try to take away what is rightfully ours!"

"I was so close!" Oogie whimpered. "I was almost rid of Halloween for good, and I was to become King of Bug Town…"

"The only thing you'll be King of is this jail cell," said Jack. "And if I ever catch you trying to cause trouble again…" He paused. "GAME OVER!"

Baron jumped at the sound of Jack shouting. "Whoa…" he said. He turned to Zero. "No wonder he's the Pumpkin King…"

Zero nodded.

Baron leaned back so he could lean against the wall, only to hit something that felt like…wood. He turned around and saw that he was standing in front of a door being held shut by an iron bar. Curious, Baron lifted the iron bar out of the way, and opened the door. Behind the door, he found a tiny, dark room.

"Hello?" he called, cautiously walking into the room. "Anyone in there?"

"Oh my," a quiet voice said from the corner. "Who are you?"

Baron looked over at the corner, but it was too dark to see anything. Zero, who had followed Baron in, used his nose to light up the room a little. In the corner of the room was a living rag-doll, who had long, red yarn for hair and a patchwork dress.

"Oh!" said Baron. Then, he remembered something. "Hey, your name wouldn't happen to be Sally, would it?"

"Y-yes…" Sally answered timidly. "Oogie put me in this cell. He wanted somebody named "the Pumpkin King," but he got me instead. He seemed really angry…"

"Did someone say my name?" asked Jack. He saw Sally. "OH! You must be the Doctor's newest creation! Well, you don't need to worry anymore. The Doctor sent us to find you!"

"Really?" asked Sally. "But…what about Oogie?"

"Oh, we don't need to worry about him anymore," said Baron. "_I _just defeated him! And, you know, Jack helped, too."

Jack looked at Baron and shook his head. "Of course you did, Baron," he said. "Well, now that Oogie's been successfully taken care of, I say we all head back to Halloween Town! I'm sure everyone will be happy to know that Halloween can presume without any trouble!"

With that, Jack ran out of the cell, followed by Baron, Zero, and a suddenly fascinated Sally.

--

Soon, the group found themselves back in Halloween Town, which was now successfully bug-free. In the center of town, all the residents had appeared, relieved that it was safe to walk the streets again. Sally cautiously walked closer to Jack.

"Th-thank you for saving me, Pumpkin King," she said.

Jack turned to Sally. "Please, call me Jack," he said. "And it was no trouble at all, uh…" Jack suddenly realized that, for some reason, he had forgotten the rag-doll's name!

Sally gave a shy smile. "Sally," she finished for him.

"Sally," Jack repeated. "Uh…yes, of course."

Then, for some reason, Jack and Sally just stood there, staring at each other.

"Aww…" Baron said to Zero. "Ain't that sweet?"

"Sally!" a familiar voice said. Baron turned around and saw Dr. Finkelstein wheeling toward them. "There you are! Thank goodness. I have some things for you to do back at the lab, and…"

However, Sally wasn't listening. She was too busy gazing at Jack.

"Ahem!" said the Doctor, beginning to get frustrated. "Sally? Sally! Are you listening to me, girl?"

"Aw, come on, Doc," said Baron. "Don't ruin the mood."

Just then, the Mayor appeared too. "All right, everyone!" he said. "Thanks to the valiant efforts of Jack Skellington and his new friend, the Red Baron, Halloween is now bug-free and ready to begin! Let us make the most of this joyous night!"

And all the residents of Halloween Town cheered.

"Oh, Mr. Baron!" said the Mayor, walking over to the boy. "Did you want this back?" He held out Baron's bag of pranks.

"Sure, I do!" said Baron, taking the bag. "Thanks for holding onto it for me," he added.

"Oh, it was no problem at all!" said the Mayor. "And thank you again for all your help."

"Eh, it was no big deal," said Baron. He looked at Jack, who was being congratulated by the crowd. He turned back to the Mayor. "Listen, could you tell Jack I said 'goodbye'?"

"Oh…" said the Mayor. "You're leaving already?"

"I'm afraid so," said Baron. "I got places to go, people to be with…" He turned back to Jack. "But I'm sure Jack won't notice I'm gone."

"Okay, I understand," said the Mayor. "Thanks again, Mr. Baron!"

"No problem!" said Baron. "Give my best to everyone! Happy Halloween!"

With that, Baron began to make his way out of Halloween Town

"Let's see," Baron said as he walked. "I need to get back to Peach Creek, so if I found that tree with the Jack O'Lantern again, I bet it would help me get back." Suddenly, a faint glow began to shine in one of the inside pockets of Baron's jacket. Baron reached into his pocket, and pulled out the map he had found earlier that night. He looked at it. "Hey!" he exclaimed. "This leads right back to that tree! Peach Creek, here I come!"

--

Before Baron knew it, he had found the Jack O'Lantern tree again. "Nice…" he said. He was just about to open the door, when…

"Baron!"

Baron whirled around at the sudden voice, and was surprised to see Jack running down the path toward him.

Jack stopped in front of Baron. "Are you about to leave?" he asked.

"Yeah," said Baron, still surprised. "I…take it the Mayor told you?"

"Yes, he did," said Jack. "But you see…I couldn't let you leave without thanking you properly."

"Really?" asked Baron. "Well, uh…you're welcome."

Jack shook his head. "Baron, I can't thank you enough," he said. "I don't think I would have stopped Oogie on time if you hadn't helped me. I've never met someone like you before. Plus…I enjoyed your company. A lot."

"Huh," said Baron. "Well, Jack…I guess I liked talking to you, too."

Jack smiled "I'm glad," he said. "And because of that, I'd like to ask you something…"

"Yes?" asked Baron.

"Baron…" said Jack. "Do you think…do you think that there's any way that you could come back to Halloween Town again? You know, and not have to worry about Oogie causing trouble?"

"Come back?" asked Baron. "Well…I'm sort of busy all year, because of school. I'm even busy during the summer. Halloween is one of the only nights I'm able to actually have any free time…"

Jack's smile grew bigger. "What a coincidence," he said. "I'm busy all year, too. Plus, one of my only free nights is Halloween. At least, when I'm not scaring people…"

Now Baron was smiling, too. "So…you think our only rendezvous night would be Halloween?" he asked.

"Only if you want to come back," Jack answered. "I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do, Baron."

"What?" asked Baron. "After all we've been through together, you think I wouldn't come back?" He paused. Then his smile turned into a smirk. "You'd better be waiting for me next Halloween, buddy. And all the other ones after that. You're _stuck _with me. For a _long _time."

"Really?" asked Jack. "Oh, thank you Baron!" Then, without warning, he bent down and wrapped his arms around Baron.

Baron's eyes widened. "Well, I wasn't expecting this, but…okay," he said. Then, he slowly returned the hug.

It was a while before either let go.

"Well, I probably shouldn't keep you any longer," said Jack.

"So, see you next year?" asked Baron.

"I'll be waiting for you," said Jack.

"Good," said Baron. "And don't worry," he added, holding up the map. "I'll always find my way back." He opened the tree's Jack O'Lantern door and got ready to jump in.

"Happy Halloween, Baron."

"Happy Halloween, Jack.

* * *

_And so ends our story_

_For all is now well._

_No more insects to be found,_

_No more stink bugs to smell._

--

_No more spines that are prickly,_

_No more pincers that bite._

_No more poisonous moths_

_That impair our sight._

--

_No more slugs that are slimy,_

_Or hornets that sting._

_Thanks all to our friends Baron_

_And Jack Skellington…the Pumpkin King._

* * *

**Author's Note**: And there you have it. There's only one chapter left for all you fans to wait for, and that's the epilogue. I'll have it up as soon as I can. But for now, I'm done. This chapter was _killer _to write. Anyway, thanks to all who have been reviewing so far. Happy reading! ;)-**AMX**


	18. Signs of Growing Up

Epilogue: Signs of Getting Older: Foreshadowing of a New Adventure?

"YAY!" Ed cheered, jumping up. "I knew Jack and Eddy's brother could save Halloween Town from the Oogie Man!"

"That's my bro!" said Eddy.

"I must admit, that was impressive," said Double D.

"Eh, it wasn't that big of a deal," said Baron. "I mean, at least not compared to you guys. I only fought Oogie once; you guys fought him _three times_."

"That's correct, boys," said Jack.

"Well, yeah, I guess you can put it that way…" said Eddy.

"Eddy?" Ed suddenly asked.

"What is it, Ed?" asked Eddy.

"I'm hungry," Ed answered. "Can I raid your fridge?"

Double D disbelievingly stared at his friend. "Well, at least you asked…" he said. "Ed, why don't you and I go find something for all of us to eat?"

"Oh!" Ed immediately perked up. "Okay!" He ran out of Baron's room.

Double D then looked at Jack. "Jack, why don't you come and help us?" he asked. "I'm sure these two would like a minute alone."

"What?" asked Jack. He then looked at Eddy and Baron. "_Oh_," he said, suddenly getting the idea. "I get it. Of course I'll help."

Then Double D and Jack left the room, leaving the brothers by themselves.

Eddy and Baron looked at each other for a second; then…they started laughing.

"Oh man…" Baron managed to say between laughs. "These past few years have been crazy, haven't they?'

"Easy for you to say," said Eddy. "You weren't the one in the line of fire all those times!"

"But hey," Baron shot back, "you got through it, right? Besides, you had a lot more backup. Back then, it was just me, Jack, and Zero."

"Hmm…I see what you mean," said Eddy. He paused. Then, "I really missed you, bro."

"I missed you too, Eddy," said Baron.

"The only thing I don't understand," said Eddy, "is that if you knew about the map the whole time, and you were always planning on giving it to me, why didn't you tell me about it sooner?"

"Well, I was gonna tell you when I left for college," said Baron, "but then I realized that if you really _were _anything like me, you'd find it eventually."

"Jerk," said Eddy.

"I know," said Baron. "But that's what people love about me."

"Only 'cause they never saw the real you," Eddy shot back.

"And yet you still love me, too," said Baron.

"I know," said Eddy. "What's wrong with me?"

The brothers laughed.

"So," said Eddy, "why'd you decide to suddenly come back, bro?"

"Well," said Baron, "as you already know, I graduated from college the year you first found the map."

"Yeah, okay," said Eddy.

"Well, I knew I was a shoo-in for completing everything I needed to do to graduate. I got a good job in the town where the college was," said Baron. "It was okay, good pay. I even got a girlfriend." He chuckled. "I thought it was getting real serious with her, little bro. I was about to search for an engagement ring, when she suddenly told me that she 'found somebody else.'"

"What?" asked Eddy. "I didn't know that! Mom and Dad never told me anything about a girlfriend!"

"That's 'cause they didn't know, either," said Baron. "I wasn't going to tell you guys about her until after I proposed. At least she told me _before _I spent money on a ring." Baron gave a sheepish chuckle. "As you can guess, I was sort of a wreck for a while."

"Understandable," said Eddy. "But still, _you _got dropped? I don't believe it! You've _never _been dropped! You're…well, you're _you_!

"That's what I said to myself after it happened," said Baron. "But I still had to finish college, so I made that my priority for the time being. But somewhere in the middle of it, I got your letter. That helped a lot; especially to read that Jack remembered me after all that time."

"All that time?" asked Eddy. "According to Jack, you were only gone for three years."

"Well, you know what I mean," said Baron. "But still…" He paused. "Anyway, after I graduated, I settled down for a while. But as the years went on, and I started getting your other letters about your adventures with Jack, I thought it was only fair that I come and tell you _my _story."

"Well, I'm glad you did," said Eddy. "So, what are you gonna do now?"

"Actually, I thought I'd move back in the area and find a place to work," said Baron. "While I was away, I realized I missed good ol' Peach Creek."

"Why?" asked Eddy. "This place is so boring!"

The brothers laughed again.

"Hey," said Baron. "What do you say that later, we get _that _old thing out back onto the driveway?" He pointed to the bright red convertible in his room.

"What?" asked Eddy.

"I said you can have it when you turn fourteen, right?" asked Baron. "Well, if I recall correctly, you're turning sixteen in the near future."

Eddy's face lit up. "Oh, yeah!" he said. "I've been so busy worrying about the play and defeating Oogie that I totally forgot that I'm turning sixteen!"

"Are you serious?" asked Baron. "Wow, that must've been some fight if it made you forget about your own birthday."

"Yeah," said Eddy. Suddenly, he seemed to turn bashful, which was extremely rare for him. "And…actually, now that you mention it…something else has been happening over the years."

"Really?" asked Baron. "What is it?"

"Well, you see…" said Eddy, lowering his voice. "I met this girl, and…"

"Really?!" asked Baron. "You, of all people! Well, who's the lucky lady? Do your friends know?"

Eddy quickly got up and closed the door. "Well, that's the thing," he said. "Ed and Double D are friends with her, too. And we're just friends. We all met her when we were younger."

"And you've been keeping in touch with her ever since?" asked Baron.

"Yeah," said Eddy. "When we first met, we all gave her our e-mail addresses."

"And you've been talking to her?" asked Baron.

"Yeah," said Eddy. "It's just that, now that we're all older, she's wanting to come and visit again, and I'm a little nervous."

"Well, I don't see a real problem," said Baron. "You can all still be friends, I guess. But you still haven't told me who this girl is."

"Well, before I tell you, I need to ask you this," said Eddy. Then, a sly grin appeared on his face.

"How much do you know about a band called…Gorillaz?"

* * *

**Author's Note**: (Stares at the computer screen) Sigh…I can't believe it. I'm actually done with this story. And it only took me a year! (Laughs) But yeah. I'm glad I'm done with this story. Now, I can finally start work on the last story in this saga, _Spring Break witb an Ed_. And to tell you the truth, I'm glad. This saga was fun to do over the years, but I'd like to work on my new story, _Kingdom of Earth_, really soon.

Well, on another note, I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has reviewed this story, and all the other stories in this saga, for that matter. Thanks to all of you, this story has gotten eighty-something reviews! Thanks to all of you, I was able to keep going with this saga. Once again, thanks again to all who have loved and reviewed my stories, and happy reading! ;)-**AMX**


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